state test.?........

I just took my test a couple of weeks ago. I'm in MO and we had 5 different tests so that people couldn't cheat off each other. I thot my test was pretty easy (missed 4) but a girl who took the same test as me missed 12 and said the test was hard. Our skills test was pretty easy, too. We had to get a resident up, shower, dress, and groom them, including nail care and denture care. Then we had to feed a resident. I think one reason our skills test was so easy was because our whole class had already been working about 2 1/2 months on the floor as NA's at our Nursing Home so we already knew how to do a lot of things.

Every state does not have the exact same test, but I think they're all fairly similar.

The written test is very easy and is mostly common sense. If you relax and read over your information, you should be fine.

The skills test seems to vary by state, mostly in the skills you have to do. here, we drew a paper with five random skills on it. Every paper was different, but all of them used handwashing as one of the skills. When you do your skills, say every step out loud!

I just took the NC test a couple weeks ago. There ere several different written tests to prevent cheating. It was really common sense though. You should be fine on that.

I was really nervous for the skills test too! They give you 5 skills to perform. The first one is always washing hands. You get 30 minutes. And actually once you get started just focus on what you're doing and try to ignore the testing person. I ended up forgetting to provide privacy on one of my skills, but still passed. The bolded steps in your handbook are the most important but always remember when you leave the patient "bed is int he lowest position, call bell in reach, I will now wash my hands!" Also if you are still on a skill and you realize you missed a step you can say stop i want to go back and you can go back and redo the step you think you missed or messed up on. You just can't go back to a skill once you say you're done with it. It's really not that bad. Just keep telling yourself I can do this! I can do this! I'm sure you'll be fine! Good luck!

I am scheduled to take my test in NC on the 14th. I am nervous, but I must say that reading all of these confident posts has made me a lot less nervous.
I have been studying with the help of handwritten notecards I made for myself, and just going over and over them, acting out each skill as I seem fit. I even bought some disposable gloves and a bedpan. Apparently that is the skill that is tricky due to the "two pairs of gloves" you have to remember. I am not nervous about the written portion, of course it is the skills that is driving me batty!

My instructor taught me this little acronym

Please Smile and Be Happy
P(privacy)S(hand call signal to patient)B(Bed to lowest position)H(wash Hands)
good luck to you!
Ellen