Showing posts with label cna training class. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cna training class. Show all posts

Monday, September 7, 2009

CNA: Training, Jobs, Salaries

CNA training is required to become a Certified Nursing Assistant.

Also known as CNA, Personal care Assistant, or PCA, Home Health Aide, the title will vary depending on the area or setting in which you are working. Certified Nursing assistants, are probably the hardest working, and the most underpaid.

The services they provide are immeasurable Nursing Assistants have to be caring, hardworking and dedicated. The position can be stressful yet rewarding. Many CNAs do not get the credit and recognition they deserve.

What is A CNA and How do I Become one? Certified Nursing Assistants work closely under the supervision of Nurses Usually an RN, or LPN. Certified Nursing assistants can work in a variety of settings, including, Nursing Home facilities, Hospital settings, or even provide care in the Home. The C NA functions in the role to assist with patient care needs. Duties vary, according to the location in which you choose to work. For example a home health aide duties, may consist of helping a client with a bath for that day, preparing a meal, reminding or assisting patient in medication, obtaining a blood sugar. Transporting a patient to an appointment, light chore work that may include assisting with laundry, and light house keeping in the part of the home where the patient spends most of the day.

A Nursing assistant who works in the hospital may be responsible for seven to thirteen patients at a time, they will usually do rounds every two hours on the patients, and be responsible for answering any call lights in between. The first round usually consist of taking a full set of vital signs on each patient, assisting with transfers, getting a patient from bed to chair, or putting them back to bed, they may assist with baths as well, and with meals.

Nursing assistants in the hospital settings can assist in inserting and removing Foley catheters, and many other task like such hooking up oxygen and assisting in dressing changes under direct supervision of RN. Certified Nursing Assistants that work in Nursing homes have the most demanding duties, they usually are responsible for ten or more patients at a time. It can be very physical as well, because a lot of the patients are not able to do much for themselves. It requires a lot of patience and understanding.

Certified nursing assistants are very important, for they are watchful eyes, because they spend most of their time with the patient they can alert the nurse to anything that may be abnormal, so that she can intervene.

There are also a number of free CNA training classes, online or through an institution such as a nursing home or hospital.

What kind of Training is Required? You can become a Certified Nursing Assistant in as little as six weeks. Depending on where you live, you can get training that is sometimes offered at local facilities, such as Local Hospitals, Nursing Homes. Technical Schools, or Community Colleges. The Red Cross, and Good will Industries even offer the training. In High School, depending on where you live, Health Occupations, Students of America allows you to obtain certification as a Nursing assistant as well. How the program works is that you take one semester, learning theory, the second semester is based on clinical, and then you are able to take the written exam to obtain certification.

Among others, there are a lot of Allied Health courses even offered on line. The college network, and Ashford university, to name a few offer programs in Allied Health. Certification, includes a written , and clinical demonstration. Clinical demonstration may include proper hand Hygiene, providing privacy, and dignity, obtaining oral and rectal and axillary temperatures. Obtaining a manual blood pressure. Giving a patient a bed bathe, Placing a patient on the bed pan, Making an occupied bed. Colostomy care, Oral hygiene etc.

Salary A certified Nursing Assistant Salary will range for any where between $19,00- $32,000 a year depending on the area where you live. Most Can will tell you that it is not about the money. They simply like what they do.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Certified Nursing Assistant Training

Becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant, or CNA, requires completing a CNA training class and passing the state exam. CNAs work closely with patients, under the supervision of a nurse.

This job is also sometimes referred to as a "home health care aide," "nurse's aide," "patient care technician" or "orderly." CNAs provide numerous forms of assistance to patients, including feeding, bathing and grooming. They also assist nurses with medical equipment, take vital signs and relay information about the patients' conditions to nurses, providing enhanced care to their patients.

The CNA position is often considered a stepping stone in the career path of licensed nurse. Many nurses start out as CNAs and then bring to their nursing training valuable experience gained as a CNA. People who have chosen to become CNAs cite numerous reasons for doing so. One of the most frequently mentioned reasons is the amount of direct personal contact that CNAs have with patients.

A CNA is likely to be the medical professional whom a patient sees most frequently. This allows CNAs to provide care in the form of paying attention to a patient's health and emotional needs. CNAs make conversation with patients and collect information about the patients' well-being, symptoms and progress. Some people also cite job stability based on the number of people in the United States who are likely to need nursing assistance in the future remains high, which should keep CNAs in demand for years to come. Others note that the starting salary for CNAs, which can vary depending on years of experience, is in the range of $22,000 to $28,000.

CNAs can work in a variety of locations, including:

  • (1) patients' homes;
  • (2) nursing homes;
  • (3) assisted living facilities;
  • (4) hospitals;
  • (5) hospices;
  • (6) mental health centers.

In order to enroll in a CNA training program, a person needs to have a high school degree or GED. CNA training programs vary in length from 6 to 12 weeks, and are usually offered at community colleges or medical facilities.

Students participate in a classroom component and also practice skils in a clinical setting. In the classroom, students will learn about anatomy and physiology of the human body, nutrition, infection control and certain basic nursing skills. In clinical settings, students will learn how to transfer patients to and from beds and chairs, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and certain other nursing skills.

Clinical portions of a training program are designed to give students "hands-on" experience so that they are prepared to care for patients on their first day as a CNA. In terms of certification to practice as a CNA, the requirements are different in each state. However, most schools that offer training programs also offer certification. Prospective students are advised to inquire as to whether the school they have chosen offers certification. In the event that the school does not offer certification through its training program, it may also be possible to obtain certification through a national association for home health care.

Interested in becoming a CNA? You can find more information about the job, the training, and requirements at CNA Training Class: http://www.cnatrainingclass.com