Certified Nurse Assistant

Nursing assistants help provide basic care for patients in hospitals and residents of long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes.

Classroom instruction and clinical training include resident care skills, vital signs, nutrition, emergency procedures and rehabilitation. Eligible students take the state competency exam for certification. 

First class meeting will consist of an orientation that will include a mandatory reading comprehension test.

Fall 2024 - Daytime

CLASSROOM (BASIC / DIDACTIC)

Course Number: AH201

Dates: August 6 - December 4, 2024

Days: Tuesday & Wednesday

Time: 8:00 am - 2:30 pm

Room: 107

Fee: $1,300, includes textbooks, supplies, CPR training, uniforms, clinicals

NCCRS Credits: 5

CLINICAL

Dates: Begin September 18

Days: Tuesday & Wednesday

Time: 7:00 am - 2:30 pm

Room: Offsite

Fee: Included in cost above

A background check may be required for externships, clinicals and licensing, certification or registration with the appropriate governing board.

 

Fall 2024 - Evening / Saturday

CLASSROOM (BASIC / DIDACTIC)

Course Number: AH201

Dates: August 7, 2024 - January 11, 2025

Days: Wednesday & Saturday

Time: W: 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm; Sat: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm

Room: 107

Fee: $1,300, includes textbooks, supplies, CPR training, uniforms, clinicals

NCCRS Credits: 5

CLINICAL

Dates: Begin September 25

Days: Wednesday & Saturday

Time: W: 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm; Sat: 7:00 am - 3:30 pm

Room: Offsite

Fee: Included in cost above

A background check may be required for externships, clinicals and licensing, certification or registration with the appropriate governing board.

 

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Medical Program Requirements

All SICE medical courses include required textbooks, supplies, and uniforms (unless otherwise noted). Students in all SICE medical programs should be 18 years or older, and speak, read, and write at a minimum 10th grade level.

Clinical Requirements

A Social Security or tax ID number, background check, medical exam, vaccinations (including Covid-19), drug screening, government-issued picture ID, N95 mask fitting, CPR, TB test, and Fire Card (for Los Angeles if applicable) are mandatory for those SICE medical programs that require clinical externships at partner facilities. Other clinical requirements may exist. Clinical externships included in SICE medical programs are unpaid educational experiences.

Licensing Requirements

In addition to program completion and clinical requirements, proof of U.S. High School diploma or equivalent, passing licensure exam score, and additional items may be required for licensure in California. 

Job Duties

Nursing assistants provide basic care and help with activities of daily living.  They typically do the following:

• Clean and bathe patients or residents
• Help patients use the toilet and dress
• Turn, re-position, and transfer patients between beds and wheelchairs
• Listen to and record patients’ health concerns and report that information to nurses
• Measure patients’ vital signs, such as blood pressure and temperature
• Serve meals and help patients eat

Some nursing assistants also may dispense medication, depending on their training level and the state in which they work.

In nursing homes and residential care facilities, assistants are often the principal caregivers.  They have more contact with residents than other members of the staff.  Because some residents stay in a nursing home for months or years, assistants may develop close relationships with their residents.

Work Environment

Most nursing assistants and orderlies work in hospitals and nursing care facilities.  Some work in ambulatory healthcare services, continuing care retirement communities, assisted living facilities for the elderly, and government facilities.  The work of nursing assistants can be strenuous.  They spend much of their time on their feet as they take care of many patients or residents.  Because they frequently lift people and do other physically demanding tasks, nursing assistants have a higher rate of injuries and illnesses than the national average.  They are typically trained in how to properly lift and move patients, which can reduce the risk of injuries.

NCCRS College Credit Recommendation

More than 500 cooperating colleges and universities (including most California Community Colleges and Cal State Universities) will consider granting college credit based on NCCRS credit recommendations. Additional colleges may also award college units for SICE Medical Career Courses. 

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