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CNA Certification in California

People who wish to become a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) in California must undergo specific requirements. The Department of Health Services (DHS) has approved hundreds of certified CNA training classes all over the state and also keeps an active CNA registry that lists the names of every person certified and approved to perform the duties of as CNA in California.

Requirements to become a CNA in California

To get certified in the state of California as a CNA certification, students must be 16 years of age or older, finish a CNA approved program with at least 150 training hours, and pass a state-approved certification exam. They must also get medical exams themselves to make sure they don’t have any health risks that they might be able to pass on to the patients in their care once they are employed.

Any of the many programs available in the state that are approved by the DHS are good for completing the requirements you need to become a CNA and get a job. The classes are available at several facilities including community colleges, adult training schools, community centers, and health care facilities.

What Does A CNA Student Learn?

CNA students in California will learn many different skills they will need inb their jobs as CNAs. Some of these skills and information includes:

  • Long-term care safety measures
  • Emergency measures
  • How to control infections
  • Patients’ rights
  • Medical procedures such as how to take temperature, how to take blood pressure, etc
  • Students also have to work with supervision in a clinical setting to make sure they have learned the required medical and clinical skills they need to be successful in the CNA field.

California also has approved some places to provide online and continuing education training opportunities for CNA students. Here are some of the approved places:

  • Silverchair Learning Systems
  • aQuire Training Solutions
  • Care Train
  • Care 2 Learn
  • CME Resource/NetCE.
  • Tenet Healthcare Corp.
  • Upstairs Solutions
  • EC CPR
  • Fox Learning Systems, Inc.
  • My Free CE
  • Med Com, Inc.
  • HealthCare Academy
  • CiNet Healthcare Learning

NOTE: Even though online CNA classes can be taken at these venues, there are still certain requirements that must be done in person as online training doesn’t cover 100 percent of the requirements you need to be certified as a CNA in the state of California.

CNA Certification Testing in California

After students finish an approved CNA course in California, they must then take a licensing examination, and as long as they pass the test, their names will be added to the list of California CNAs available for work. If you don’t pass the test the first time, you may retake it up to three times in a two year timeframe.

Once students have taken all the classes and taken the test they must submit fingerprints and submit to a state and federal background check when they apply for their job, as well as take a TB test.

Make sure to check out CNA Programs in Los Angeles and CNA classes in San Francisco.

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Jakie S

I have been a CNA in the state of California since 1995. One of my passions in life is to help people and help others who want to expand their careers and become CNAs.

3 Responses

  1. Angela Thomas says:

    I passed my state exam two months ago and found a great paying job in a local hospital. I am so happy and wanted to thank everyone here. I found this wonderful website almost 14 months ago and after reading few of the articles on here, decided to give a chance to a career in the health industry. I used to be in mortgage but after the subprime meltdown, I was not making much but it was still paying the rent. I can honestly now say that I’ve found the best career that will last a lifetime. Thanks to everyone and keep on reaching for the stars!!!

  2. carol lynn says:

    I wanted to know if I took the course in California, can I get a job in another state without having to take more classes?. Also I live in Cypress California do you have any classes close to me.

  3. Steve says:

    Heya i’m for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It really useful & it helped me out a lot. I hope to give something back and aid others like you helped me.

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