You want to begin a career as a nursing assistant, so you are browsing through materials that speak about the Certified Nursing Assistant course. You want to know what is taught in CNA classes. If this is why you are here, then, you have ended up in the right place.
In a CNA class, you will learn all about the things that are needed to pass the examination for becoming a Certified nursing assistant. CNA classes help students gain all the necessary skills and knowledge so that they can provide the patients with the much-needed care. The classes are known to meet all the requirements and standards that are recommended by the federal government.
The CNA classes are comprised of both practical and theoretical sessions that mostly lasts for 75 hours. It is important to attend both of these sessions to be able to attend the certification exams. These classes are conducted by various colleges and institutions. In these classes, you will cover various topics which include anatomy, physiology, medical terminology, charting and other related sciences.
Theory Classes
The topics you will be covering in the theoretical classes are listed below-
- Basic Care: Under this topic, you will learn all about medicines, hygiene and nutritional requirements of the patients. This topic will teach you the basic things which include all about taking care of your patients on a daily basis. Basic care includes bathing, shaving, dressing, making beds, feeding, medication, charting and more.
- Communication Skills: Here you will learn to communicate with the patients, nurses, and doctors. You will learn to be calm, clear and confident when communicating with others to serve your duties properly.
- CPR: In the CNA classes, you will learn various techniques and skills that will help you revive your patients. One such skill is CPR; this is an important skill that you will learn to perform. This skill will help you save lives in emergency situations.
- Nutrition: You will have to see to it that the patient’s nutritional needs are met and; therefore, you will have to learn all about it. You will have to monitor the amount of solid and liquid the patient is taking, and the nutritional value of the food to help the patient recover quickly, as diet plays an important role in the recovery process.
- First aid: As a nurse, you will have to administer first-aid to the patients which will be taught in details in these theoretical classes. Providing first- aid is crucial in most instances.
- Disease prevention: You will learn all about disease prevention and safety measures that you must take in these classes.
- Documentation and Charting: As a nursing assistant, you will have to keep track of the patient’s vitals, nutritional requirements and the changes in their medical conditions. You will learn to monitor and keep a record of all these in detail.
- Ergonomics: In this subject, you will learn to use medical equipment in a proper way to prevent accidents like when moving the patient from the bed to the wheelchair or from one bed to another.
- Medical Procedures: You will be taught all about the different medical procedures and practices in the medical field.
- Rights of the residents: You will also learn all about protecting the rights of the residents and helping them to solve their problems.
In the theory classes, you will also learn about infection control, safety, and anatomy. You will also be taught about type I and Type II diabetes, respiratory problems and cognitive impairment. You will learn to manage these problems. In the CNA classes, you will learn how to take care of patients suffering from different types of illness as every patient is different and needs to be handled differently.
Practical Classes
In the practical classes, you will be able to work in real hospital setups and learn everything about being a certified nursing assistant. You will get the opportunity to work beside doctors and registered nurses. In these classes, you will learn the following-
- How to wash hands
- How to shift patients sideways to prevent bed sores?
- You will learn to move the patients from wheelchair to bed and vice versa.
- How to record and measure the weight and height of the patients
- You will learn to record and measure the vitals like blood pressure, blood sugar, pulse rate and urine output of the patients.
- You will learn to bathe, medicate, feed, exercise, and move the patients
- You will learn how to collect blood and urine samples for all kinds of tests.
- How to prepare the patients for surgery?
- You will be taught to dress the wounds in the proper way
- You will also learn about oral hygiene, making beds and shaving
You will be taught all about the equipment that you will be working with, for example, the blood pressure cuff and gauge, wheelchairs, hospital beds and more. You will also learn the terms used in the medical field as you will be expected to use these terms to communicate with the doctors and the registered nurses.
In the CNA Classes, you will learn everything that is listed above and more. As a certified nursing assistant, you will be a critical part of the health care system, and you will have to learn the intricacies of the job. Your responsibilities will be taught to you and you will have to abide by the rules that are set for the CNA.
All of these topics will be covered to prepare you for the competency exam, you will have to take the once you have completed the CNA classes. These topics will be covered so that you can become a responsible CNA and help you attain your license so that you can begin work as a certified nursing assistant. Once you have passed the competency exam, you will attain the license needed to work as a nursing assistant.
So, now that you know what will be taught in the CNA classes, wait no more and enroll yourself in these classes for a bright future.
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