CNA Training & CNA Certification

One of the very first things you’ll learn while doing your CNA Training is how to take vital signs. Vital signs are a very important part of a CNA’s daily routine, as they provide information on how well a persons body is functioning, and how well their major organs are performing. Taking a patients vital signs includes taking their pulse, taking their temperature, checking the patients blood pressure, and monitoring the lungs to ascertain the breathing rate.

Checking a patients vital signs is very important, because it provides valuable information on whether or not a patients body is functioning as it should. The rate of a patients vital signs is compared against a chart containing the standard number for that persons age and sex. Learning how to perform the vital signs test accurately will ensure you have an up to date and current assessment of your patients condition, which can then be related back to the supervising nurse and/or doctor.

Taking a persons pulse gives a superficial idea of how their heart is functioning. If a pulse is too fast or slow, or skips a beat, these are crucial indicators that a patient may have an underlying medical condition that needs to be dealt with. There are a variety of places you can take a patients pulse from, the most common being placing the index and middle finger over the patients artery located on their wrist. There are also arteries available on the neck, arms, chest, abdomen, thighs and back of the knees in which a pulse can be taken. Having multiple areas in which to take a pulse from can be benificial if the patient has impairment or pain in any of their limbs, and ensures you will always have a place in which to gain a superficial idea of how well their heart is performing.

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For those people who are put off with the tution costs incurred in becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant, its worth noting that there are various low cost, and even free, CNA training programs available.  The amount of low cost or free courses available to you will depend on your location, and your willingness to do some research, and even if their are no campus based training programs near where you live, there are some low cost and free CNA classes online.

Without doubt, one of the best places to find affordable nursing assistant training is the American Red Cross. You should contact your local Red Cross Chaper and ask for information on their scheduling for the Red Cross CNA Class. The Red Cross CNA Class is a fast paced course that can normally be completed in about 5 weeks or so, so its worth remembering that during this time you might need to free up the majority of your schedule to accomodate this. All of the courses are taught by registered nurses, and after completion you will become eligable to take the CNA certification test. For start dates and tuition rates, contact your local American Red Cross.

Another worthwhile resource for low cost CNA programs is your local community centre or college. The majority of community colleges will have short term nursing aide programs, just ensure that any nursing aide course you register for through a community college is state certified, so that you are able to sit the state certification exam at the end of it. Payment for courses like these are normally taken upon registration for the course, and courses like this normally start at various times throughout the year so you should be able to start a course very soon.

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It takes more than the technical abilities you learn in a CNA training class to become a competent Certified Nursing Assistant. There are various character traits that a person should possess that are absolutely vital in performing the job as a nursing assistant. A CNA  should be able to perform their duties as efficiently and compassionate as possible.

An important character trait of a CNA is the need to be thorough. You must be dependable, and reliable. Your employer will rely on you to show up to work when you are scheduled to do so, and failure to do this can leave patients without the proper care they need, and can put further strain on the existing staff of the facility you work within.

A further benefit of being thorough is when caring for your patients. Ensuring you clean your patients body, change dressing, and bed covers thoroughly will raise the comfort levels of your patient, while also preventing un-needed disease and infections from arising. Being meticulous in your work and duties, however large or small, is a crucial part of being a CNA, and your employers will count on you having this trait.

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After successfully graduation from a state approved nursing assistant course, and after you have passed the CNA Certification Test for your state, you will be eligable to work in many organisations and companies as a Certified Nursing Assistant, also called a CNA. When you start working as a CNA, you’ll gain loads of experience every day just by perfoming your duties, and you will continue to learn as you go. Infact, you will be expected to learn and progress as a CNA throughout your career.

To become a fully certified nurse assistant in the US, you will be required to take and complete a nurses aide program which is approved by the state you choose to take your training in. Completing a state approved CNA program will ensure that you have completed the necessary number of classroom and clinical hours that are need for qualification and certification.

The CNA certification exam is regulated and administered by each state, and covers both the written and clinical section. For the clinical section of the exam, you must be able to show your ability at bending and moving a patient, measuring the patients output of bodily fluids, taking a patients vital signs, and other various daily maintenance jobs that are related to caring for a patient in a long term care facility or other health institution. Having full comprehension of the required skills will ensure you gain state certification, and recieve a vital placement on the state registry, guaranteeing to employers that your are fully capable of performing the job of a Certified Nursing Assistant, beyond the supervision of a clinical setting.

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CNA Training DVD’s are a great way to prepare for your Certified Nursing Assistant exam. The majority of available courses on DVD consist of various modules which cover basic nursing knowledge and understanding, practical skills, and other material which sometimes goes above and beyond the duties of the average nurse assistant.

The CNA Training DVD’s will cover each of the required skills of a CNA, which are broken down into examples and descriptions of the correct way to complete certain jobs and skills. Basic care duties covered are things like sanitation, moving patients, ambulation, applying dressings and/or stockings, and other general patient care skills such as dressing the patient, feeding them, helping them with hygiene, and also room maintenance.

Other things the training DVD’s cover are things like recording patients vital signs (breathing, respiration, pulse, blood pressure, height, weight etc).

Most CNA training DVD’s will have a section covering legal issues that you may encounter on the job. These sections address the real issues that CNA’s sometimes face. A CNA that is found legally liable for something may result in fines, and possible imprisonment. In addition to this, you may possibly lose your certification and license to work as a Certified Nurse Assistant. Most of the time, it’s common sense to realise whether what you are doing is legal or not, however its a good idea to fully read up on the legal side of things so you are 100% sure where you stand.

Some of the legal topics include things like misuse of restraints, neglect of a patient, theft, abuse, and other definitions that a CNA must be aware of.

Since the CNA Certification Exam consists of a written and a practical exam, the training DVD will likely have videos which show you how to give a patient a bed bath, how to correctly move them into and out of the bath, how to perform a skin assessment, how to make a bed properly, infection control, body mechanics for proper posture and positioning, movement and R.O.M (range of movement) exercises, and more.

When considering which of the CNA training DVD’s to buy, bear in mind that the CNA requirements can differ slightly from state to state, and your duties may also differ depending on the location and facility you work in. The requirements for a home health care worker for instance, will differ greatly from that of someone who works in a geriatric nursing home, or a hospital facility.

Which CNA training DVD to buy?

It’s easy to get lost when looking for the right training material. When i was doing my CNA training, my lecturer referred me to one single training package. It was expensive (over $700 when i first purchased it), however it contained absolutely everything i needed in the one package. It has workbooks, training manuals, and of course a fully comprehensive training DVD. If i were to recommend one single all-in-one training package to any CNA student, it would be this one, without a doubt…. it was an essential part of my training and it has paid for itself thousands of times over throughout my career. It’s called Mosby’s Textbook for Nursing Assistants , its very rare (not many left i’m afraid) , however you can still purchase it here:

If this is a bit too expensive for you, then i’ve selected some cheaper alternatives that will help you out with your training:

CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant)  Training is the preparation needed for the CNA test for your State. Upon passing the test, candidates will be eligable to work as Certified Nursing Assistants, under the guidance and monitoring of registered nurses. You must score 80% or better to pass the test.

The CNA test consists of both theory and clinical tests.

CNA training is available on campus, and online. The advantage of doing it online is that you can study from home, and the prices are very affordable compared to their on campus counterparts. The only downside to online training is that it cannot cover the physical aspects of training, like being shown and then attempting to move someone, being shown and attempting to use equipment etc. This can of course be done at a facility, and many online courses offer the chance to book a few hours in one.

The length of training can range from anything between 2 weeks to several months, depending on the course you take, and the demands and requirements of the state.

After you complete your CNA training and gain your Certified Nursing Assistant certification, you will be able to perform many health care jobs with efficiency and confidence, including:

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Choosing where to take your CNA training classes is not a world away from choosing where you want to work. Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA) are trained and certified patient care technicians who are required to work in various settings, such as Hospitals, long term care facilities, home health aides, and/or in psychiatric care settings.

CNA’s are there to deliver direct patient care. In some ways, being a Certified Nurse Assistant can be a demanding job, but most people who complete their training and get a job find it very rewarding. If you are a ‘people person’, then becoming a CNA is the job for you. What does being certified actually mean? – A Certified Nursing Assistant is someone who has a certification from the state (state of which they passed the exam), which indicates that a person has a designated and required level of training to work as a Certified Nursing Assistant

States in the USA set the regulations for the training required to become a CNA seperately, ie: Each state has different requirements by law. The Federal Government sets the guidelines for the qualifications for Certified Nursing Assistants who work in Medical Care funded facilities. To meet the guidelines set out by the government, a CNA must have at least 91 hourse of training, including 16 hours of training in a supervised clinical facility.

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CNA classes online is a convenient and cost effective way to gain a quality Certified Nursing Assistant education. Since the training is online, you have the comfort of doing it from your own home. This can save you a lot of money you’d otherwise spend travelling to and from a CNA training program that is based in an actual training center. Since there are no educational pre-requisites to train for CNA certification, online cna training classes can help prepare students for their state exam.

In order to become a certified CNA, you’ll be required to sit and pass the CNA exam for your state. CNA programs differ slightly from state to state. eg: in some areas, CNA’s are only required to take a 2 week course with no formal education, while other states require several months of clinical training and theory courses. It’s worth remembering however, that all CNA training programs will teach you the same basic set of skills. Training will likely include things like taking a patients vital signs, documenting patient care, communication skills, how to move patients properly, as well as some course work in physiology, anatomy, and in some cases, Chemistry.

Many people who are interested in becoming health care professionals do not have the time to take an ‘on campus’ CNA course or Nursing Assistant course, either because they cant get a class thats close enough to where they live, they can’t fit in with the course schedule, or they simply cannot afford it.

Taking online CNA classes can be a great alternative for the people who fit into the latter category, but its worth pointing out that online courses can have some drawbacks. Online courses lack the interaction from teacher to student, and also student to student. You’ll also miss out on the hands on clinical training, which means you will not have the opportunity to practise with equipment, patients, and learn the procedures ‘live’.

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Via effective CNA Training, nursing assisants and psychiatric aides help to care for people who are physically or mentally impaired, disabled, injured, or individuals who are currently in hospitals and nursing care homes. Home Health Aides have very similar duties, but a big difference between them and CNA’s is that Home Health Aides work in patients homes or residential care homes. Nursing aides and home health aides are commonly known as ‘direct care workers’, due to the fact that they work with patients who need long term care. Of course, the exact specifics of the care they give highly depends on their speciality, and their patients needs.

Nursing Aides, who are also known as ‘Nurse Aides’, ‘Nursing Assistants’, Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), Geriatric Aides, Unlicensed Assistive Personnel, Orderlies, and ‘hospital attendants’ generally provide ‘hands on’ care, and perform routine tasks under the supervision of other medical staff.  A CNA’s tasks can vary, as nursing assistants handle many different aspects of a patients care. Common duties that most CNA’s will perform is helping their patients to eat, dress,  move around, while keeping their room neat and tidy.

Certified Nursing Assistants also answer calls for help, deliver messages to and from the patient, serve food, make beds, tidy rooms etc. Some nursing aides are also responsible for taking a patients temperature, pulse, respiration rate, and blood pressure. They may also help patients get in and out of bed, help them walk, escort them to examination rooms when needed, and also provide skin care. Sometimes a CNA will be asked to help other medical staff at the facility by setting up medical equipment, moving supplies, and assisting (where possible) with some procedures. Aides also observe and monitor patients physical health and emotional condition, and report any changes back to the nursing and medical staff.

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If you are considering a career in health care, or maybe you’re just stuck in a dead end job?. Either way, you may want to consider enrolling in a CNA training program to become a Certified Nursing Assistant. A CNA training class can give you an education and career that will set you up for life, and also give you some personal pride, success, and financial freedom in this dreary economic climate.

Every day, more and more people are looking for a new job, or a change of jobs because of their company downsizing due to the bad economic climate. Another reason for many people looking for new jobs is that they simply don’t receive enough wages…. people are getting tired of being underpaid, and more importantly under appreciated.

As a Certified Nurse Assistant, you’ll have plenty of employement opportunities. As a matter of fact, employers will likely be begging you to come and work for them!. Certified Nursing Assistants can work in hospitals, health care facilities, patient homes (private work) and in many other area’s as well. CNA’s are sometimes also classified as Nurses Aides, Patient Care Technicians, Personal Care Assistants, Home Health Aides, and simply ‘Home Help’.

To become a CNA, you’ll need to take a training class, or enroll in a CNA training program, culminating in you taking and passing a CNA Certification Exam in order to become official qualified. There are some physical requirements for a job of this type, since it does involve moving patients, making beds, tidying and organising their room, helping them to dress, helping them to the toilet, and other similar tasks. Being a certified CNA is mainly a job of giving care and monitoring your patient.

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