NA to CNA

juliaann · Feb 26, 2010

I got paid the same working the same job in a hospital as a nurse aide as I did after I was certified. Certification is not required for the job, so they didn't see any need to offer incentives for certification. Instead we got raises at our annual evaluation based on our overall performance.

NurseCubanitaRN2b, BSN, RN · Feb 28, 2010

It all depends on the state. Here in CA you must be certified before you're allowed to work in any facility. If you do end up working before you get your CNA then they're going against CA regulations. I believe they can train you and you can go along with another CNA, but technically you can't touch a patient until you're certified.

juliaann · Feb 28, 2010

It all depends on the state. Here in CA you must be certified before you're allowed to work in any facility.

Oh definitely! I really though I included that in my reply, sorry. I've had this discussion in several threads including the CNA threads in the Oklahoma Nursing forum, so I must have not checked where I was and been more thorough in my answer. My mistake.

In Oklahoma one is not required to have a state CNA license to work in a hospital. One is required to be state CNA certified to work in LTC. I am sure many states are different. In my state, if you work in my hospital, you get paid the same if you are "just" a nurse aide as a you would with your state certification CNA with comparable experience.

caliotter3 · Feb 28, 2010

You should get a raise. I would definitely inquire. One of the ladies in my CNA course was working as an NA and she said that her employer was going to give her a raise once she got the certificate. It only makes sense if they want to retain employees.

caliotter3 · Feb 28, 2010

If they tell you no raise, then look for open CNA positions at the hospital and apply for them since you will be qualified with the CNA certificate.