CNA courses?

garn2b · Jul 30, 2004

Hello everyone . I am currently getting ready to go for my ADN the fall, and I am planning an doing a CNA courses so I can have money and be able to take care of myself and son while going to school. Are there any of you who have done this or have taken CNA courses while going to school. How much does these type of courses cost and is financial aid avaliabe (if not what other means are there to pay for the courses). Also how long are they. Thanks ahead of time for any info.

Hi,

I am actually looking into this as an income option also. I spoke with one agency so far here in Georgia that offers a 4 week class for $500. I will be checking on alot more tomorrow. I figured that I could possibly do CNA work through an agency until my nursing program begins Fall 2005. I called the Red Cross here in Atlanta and they gave me info on where to find a list of approved agencies in Georgia offering the training. You might want to do the same for your state.

Best wishes

tmiller027 · Jul 30, 2004

My facility did all our training, we just had to agree to stay there for six months or loose 6 days pay.

tonicareer · Jul 30, 2004

In my area agencies want 2 or 3 years of full time experience and so do the hospitals. New CNAs usually have to tough out some long term experience time in low paid nursing homes.

OneChattyNurse · Jul 30, 2004

i would check at your local hospitals. in my area, most of them offer the class for free or you pay for it and they repay you if you decide to become employed at their facility.

i think you will have a difficult time finding agency work as a new cna. the ones i looked into wanted at least 1 year of cna experience. you could look into working a baylor package at a ltc or a hospital. that would give you a higher rate of pay, maybe closer to what the agencies would pay.

you could also take the longer class and work in med/surg or another area of the hospital instead of working in long term care. i know some of the larger hospitals will cover the additional hours to qualify you to work in acute care.

might be worth looking into!

good luck to you whatever you decide!

cnelle101 · Jul 30, 2004

Hi,
I am actually looking into this as an income option also. I spoke with one agency so far here in Georgia that offers a 4 week class for $500. I will be checking on alot more tomorrow. I figured that I could possibly do CNA work through an agency until my nursing program begins Fall 2005. I called the Red Cross here in Atlanta and they gave me info on where to find a list of approved agencies in Georgia offering the training. You might want to do the same for your state.
Best wishes

Where would I get the number for the Red Cross in my area?( I have no idea what it would be under in the phone book). I was planning on doing that b/c I heard they give them for free but I also heard they could have long waiting lists b/c of that.

sherichance · Jul 30, 2004

I just did my CNA training.It was $700 for about 6 weeks. I paid out of pocket. My pell grant would not cover a non credit course. I wanted to do this because we are a military family and getting ready to move soon. So I cant start the ADN until we move. It just wouldnt be fair to the others waiting in line for the spot.

I am glad I took the CNA class though. It is nice to get the extra experience before I become an RN.

RedSox33RN · Jul 31, 2004

Where would I get the number for the Red Cross in my area?( I have no idea what it would be under in the phone book). I was planning on doing that b/c I heard they give them for free but I also heard they could have long waiting lists b/c of that.

You could go to http://www.redcross.org and find the place nearest to you. Hope that helps! :)

abundantjoy07, RN · Jul 31, 2004

humm...i didn't know the red cross offered cna classes. in either case they tend to be expensive. my class cost $595 and that didn't include scrubs. i found my class by calling the state and requesting a list of locations in my hometown. since the state does the testing they generally help with locating classes.

but $595 is a pain in the :angryfire .thankfully today i got my cna licesence :imbar (brain fart on spelling). somehow just passing the state exam made it all a-okay. :rotfl: on to nursing school i go! :chuckle