CNA Program at Pasadena City College

hellfirecat, LVN · Oct 13, 2016

Hi! I'm considering the CNA course at PCC and I was wondering if you got in, how was it, where you went to clinicals, everything lol. Sorry for all the questions I'm just really curious.

ana_96 · Oct 13, 2016

Hi! I'm considering the CNA course at PCC and I was wondering if you got in, how was it, where you went to clinicals, everything lol. Sorry for all the questions I'm just really curious.

Hi :) I actually did get in and completed their program this past summer! For the most part it went really well. The instructors are all really nice and they want you to succeed. Scrubs and the book were already paid for! Our schedule was Mon-Thurs with Mondays being classroom lecture (also test day; they also provide lunch from a sandwich company) with the entire CNA class and Tues-Thurs at clinical with your group (full 7-8 hour shift, bring your own lunch lol). My clinical was at a nursing home in Alhambra. We would work from 6:30am-1:00pm, but we would meet up for a "post conference", which is just a talk about our day and what we learned, etc. So really I didn't get to leave till about 2:30ish the latest. As far as the clinical, we would get paired up with a CNA and just do what they do! The nursing home I was at had 3 different sections, so we had to work all 3, which was great because I got to know majority of the residents. The work itself isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I did a lot of bed making, changing briefs, feeding, showering, all that stuff! I did have 2 residents that were extremely hard to deal with- they would try to hit me, spit their food, call me names, but that's just part of the job. The rest were awesome! It's crazy how much you get to know them. You'd find yourself knowing from the top of your head what diet a resident is, how they like their coffee, what foods they like/dislike, etc. It was also awesome just talking to them and keeping them company if there wasn't any work to do. You'd be surprised how open they are! And they stories they tell are amazing. The last day there was bittersweet, it was hard to say goodbye. You find yourself getting attached to certain residents, which is what they tell you not to do, but how can you not! As far as the state test goes, it was already paid for which was awesome! Only downside of it was that it was scheduled a whole month after the course ended, so I had forgotten some things and had to refresh my memory. Both written and skills test was at the CEC campus. Be prepared to be there for a few hours! I ended up passing both first try. I know a couple who failed, so they had to wait a month to take it again and this time they had to pay for it, not sure how much it is. But yeah I think that's all I could think of right now. Overall it was a really great experience! Real eye opener. Sorry its so long! Haha. Hope this helped. Let me know if you have anymore questions!