Hand washing in CNA skill.

[Kwidner]

I'm soon to take a CNA class but I like to study up as much as possible before hand. In all the skills videos I see for the state exam they don't mention washing your hands before the skill begins. Is it presumed you already washed your hands or would you say it allowed to the examiner?

[SarahStoddard14]

Hand washing is a skill you perform to get your certificate. It's usually the first skill you perform. After that you just tell them, "I would then wash my hands." You won't actually have to wash them for each skill.

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[Kwidner]

Will we state it before and after the skill or just after?

[mvm2]

Whenever it would be required for you to do so you just state I wash my hands. So I'd tell them before and after a skill. In my opinion it is better to go on the more cautious side and say I wash my hands one extra time more then what the state wants. They won't mark you down for an extra Hand washing but will if you miss one

[Kwidner]

Sounds very wise. Thank you.

[psu_213, BSN, RN]

This was a number of years ago…but in my state, for the skills test, they tested everyone on hand washing. This was always the first skill they tested. You then had 4 or 5 (I forget the exact number) other randomly selected skills on which you were tested (for example, two step BP, changing an occupied bed, peri care, etc.). For each of those skills you would start by saying "first I would wash my hands…" and go from there. At the end, you would say "finally, I would wash my hands." You did not actually have to wash them x2 with each skill.

[KayKaz23, LPN]

You don't actually have to wash them during the skills so I would say you were washing them as many times as you think is necessary during the skill (after removing gloves and whatnot) Our instructor told us, when in doubt just say you are washing them. They don't mark you down for fake over-washing your hands.