You can work in a rewarding career providing basic care services for individuals in nursing care and healthcare facilities by working as a CNA. Before you can work as a certified nursing assistant, you must attend a training program for nursing assistants and pass the nursing assistant competency exam. Delaware offers a variety of CNA training programs.
CNA Training Requirements and Hours
It is necessary to attend a training program that has been approved by the state if you want to become a certified nursing assistant. The courses will be at least 150 hours in length. You must complete a training course in its entirety before you can sit for the competency exam to certify nursing assistants.
A training course in Delaware will prepare you to provide effective care for patients in a variety of healthcare settings. You will learn how to protect a patient’s safety and privacy. Some of your training will be spent in the classroom and the rest of your training will be spent in a clinical setting.
Transferring CNA Certification to Delaware
If you have a certification as a nursing assistant in another state, you can apply for reciprocity in order to become certified in Delaware. Applications for reciprocity can be obtained by contacting the Nursing Aide Registry for Delaware. You must have a current certification in good standing in your prior state to be considered for reciprocity.
You will need to have worked for at least 3 months as a certified nursing assistant in the former state if you want to transfer your certification without needing to attend training in Delaware. Complete your application and send in copies of any documents to verify your certification.
CNA Renewal in Delaware
Your nursing assistant certification is only valid for two years before you need to have it renewed. During that two years, you will need to be employed as a CNA or in a position providing nursing related duties. The number of hours you must work is at least sixty-four hours if you want your certification to be eligible to renew your license.
The Division of Long Term Care Residents Protection will send you your application for renewal about 3 months before it is due. This will provide you with time to complete your application and submit it before your certification expires. If you allow your certification to lapse or have not worked in the past two years, you will need to complete a training course and sit for the certification exam again.
FAQ’s
Q. I will soon be done with my certified nursing assistant training course. I know that I will then need to successfully pass the certification exam. I am not too worried about the written portion as I think I have a good understanding of the theoretical aspects of being a nursing assistant. For whatever reason, I am nervous about the skills portion of the exam. I have no idea what skills I will be asked to demonstrate. Is there anything I can do to be more prepared?
A. You can be asked to demonstrate just about any of the nursing assistant skills you learned. During the exam, you will normally need to show the steps and procedures for about 5 or so of these skills. You can have a better understanding of the skills you could be required to demonstrate by looking over the nursing assistant skills checklist. This sheet will also provide other information to help you prepare for the exam. The checklist can be found here
Q. I recently became a certified nursing assistant and learned that my certification must be renewed at certain points. I tend to be quite forgetful and am worried that I will forget when I am due to renew this certification. Is there anything to help me remember this important date?
A. Delaware uses the Prometric Company to handle certification of nursing assistants. This company will send you the paperwork you need to renew your certification. The renewal papers can take a few weeks to process. Therefore, they will send the renewal packet to you well in advance. You should expect to receive your forms for renewal about 45 days before your expiration date. Keep in mind that you must call 302-577-6666 if you need to report an address change.
CNA Certification Guidelines by State:
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