CNA Programs in West Virginia

West Virginia CNA Training

These days, the job market can be an intimidating place for students graduating from high school. While college can lead to many job opportunities, there are some great jobs that do not require a college education at all and can be even more rewarding. One of these careers is becoming a CNA.

West Virginia CNA classes are special training courses that allow you to work toward becoming a certified nursing assistant. CNAs are eligible to obtain jobs in hospitals, nursing homes, and mental health facilities. They are actively involved in public health education as well as taking vital signs, recording medical histories, and preparing patients for treatment.

Becoming a CNA in West Virginia

The first step in becoming a CNA, also referred to as a nurse aide, in West Virginia is to take a state-approved training course that is a minimum of 120 hours overall. Of those 120 hours (some courses may be longer), at least 65 must be classroom hours and at least 55 must be spent in a Medicare/Medicaid clinical setting. Students may not complete the CNA coursework online. If a student drops out part-way through the program, he or she must start over.

If an individual completes a training course in another state, he or she can become a CNA in West Virginia in one of the following ways: by taking the exam in the state where the training is done, and then requesting reciprocity or by taking a WV approved course and passing the WV exam. Persons who are trained outside of the U.S. cannot request reciprocity in WV.

After CNA Training

After the coursework is completed, students must pass West Virginia's competency exam within the next 2 years, which features both an oral/written and hands on demonstration section. An individual has three chances to take and pass this test before he or she must complete the CNA training again.

Renewing a CNA License

Once registered as a nurse aide, an individual must renew his or her registry every 2 years, documenting any nursing-related work experience in the past 3 years. He or she must have worked at least a consecutive 8 paid hours as a CNA.

Additional Resources:

• West Virginia CNA FAQs

West Virginia CNA Resources on NurseGroups.com