Texas CNA Program Basics
Like other states in the United States, Texas adheres directly to the federal regulations and recommendations for CNA training courses. Some nurse aide training programs offered in Texas may be longer than the federally mandated 75 hours. The only difference in the state of Texas is that a candidate that has completed training at any time after 1989 and has not taken the exam may still challenge the state’s CNA assessment. This is very different from most states in the U.S that require all their potential aides to sit for the exam not later than 2 years after they have finished a CNA training course.
Texas CNA Training Information
- The state of Texas is also open to out of state applicants.
- All aspiring Texas aides all over the United States who have completed CNA training after 1989 may challenge the examination.
- One reason of being open to all interested aides is the size of the state and the large population.
- The state’s large population guarantees that CNAs will find many job opportunities particularly with the state’s aging sector.
- This however doesn’t mean that the state of Texas is lenient when it comes to employing nurse aides.
- All applicants are required to present necessary identification and proof of vaccinations, physical examinations, and must also have a clean criminal/work history.
- Applicants that have derogatory accusations or convictions of patient neglect or abuse will not be permitted to work in Texas.
Texas CNA Training Requirements
- The state’s National Red Cross as well as community centers, colleges and health care facilities offer CNA training courses throughout Texas.
- All training courses follow the same type of curriculum which offers instruction for the 25 clinical skills that a nursing assistant must know to effectively perform his or her job.
- A typical CNA course includes classroom and clinical training hours to allow the students to become familiar with all nursing topics and hone the hands on skills they have learned in training.
- Students will work with real patients during the last stages of the course.
Texas CNA Examination Information
- A final assessment is given on the last day of the course or scheduled by the student once training is finished.
- The location where the exam is held as well as the start time depends on how the training was given- employer-based courses usually provide the assessment on the final day of training.
- The assessment has two sections like in training – a written multiple choice portion that must be passed before the student can proceed to the next section which is the manual skills evaluation.
- Examinees are tested on five skills out of the twenty five they have learned during the course.
- As with the written portion of the exam, the student must pass the hands on part of the test to obtain certification.
- If the student fails to obtain a passing score, he or she may retake the exam two more times.
- Failure to pass the assessment after three attempts will disqualify the examinee from further testing until the training course is retaken.
Texas CNA Certification Renewal and Reciprocity
- Texas practices reciprocity with all states in the U.S.
- CNA certificates in the state of Texas do not have expiration.
- Every 2 years, CNAs must coordinate with the state’s nurse aide registry and confirm or submit proof of employment during the past 24-month period to maintain the licence’s active status.
