Indeed, the nursing profession has attracted many individuals. For those who want to start their career in nursing, the certified nursing assistant (CNA) program has been their stepping-stone because getting a bachelors degree in nursing may take some time and may cost a great amount of money. The CNA program will not only help aspirants move towards their dream, but it will also help them gain the necessary nursing experience that they need in order to be able to give the highest quality care to their clients. In order to be able to start practicing as a CNA, you have to accomplish entire CNA certification process.
First, you will have to undergo a CNA certificate program. The entire program is made-up of theoretical and clinical practice. Before going through the 75 hours of approved clinical training, students will have to study and pass subject matters such as anatomy and physiology. This will involve lectures about different kinds of medical terminologies and will involve lectures about the functions of the different parts of the body.
In the first part of the CNA certificate program, you will have to attend lectures about different subject matters such as anatomy and physiology. You need to have a full grasp of the unique functions of the different parts of the body in order for you to be able to understand the mechanism of the different disease processes. You will also be oriented on the numerous medical terms that will be used in the clinical setting.
Students will also be taught how to properly collect specimens that will be used for laboratory procedures such as urine and stool examinations. On the other hand, practical trainings will include hands-on procedures about bed making, bed bath, vital signs taking, changing of wound dressings and all other basic nursing procedures.
Moreover, clinical practice will include 75 hours of actual exposure in different clinical areas. In the clinical areas, students will be assigned to their respective preceptors. These preceptors will be the one to grade the students during their entire exposure. The evaluation tool will then be forwarded to their instructors, who in turn will compute their total grade.
The certification exam was created by different boards of nursing in order to ensure that nursing assistants are highly equipped with the necessary nursing knowledge and skills which will help in the promotion of their own welfare and that of the patients. This will help ensure that they will not endanger their own welfare and that of the patients in anyway.
The hands on portion will require you to demonstrate five nursing procedures from a list of twenty-five. The five different nursing skills will be chosen randomly. If you are able to successfully pass the certification exam, you may already start practicing as a certified nursing assistant.
Get the exclusive inside scoop on all you need to know about Red Cross CNA Training in our CNA Certification overview.