CNA Classes in Houston

Houston is the most populous city in Texas and the fourth most populous in the country with nearly 2.5 million people living within its borders. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex has a population of seven million with 212,000 of the citizens being over the age of 65. The growing senior population is increasing the demand for CNAs in Houston’s 28 hospitals and more than 80 nursing homes. As the population of Houston and its suburbs continue to grow, the need for qualified nursing assistants will as well. That is making it a good career field to enter into, especially when training doesn’t take a significant amount of time to complete. With a number of state-approved CNA training programs in the area, anyone wishing to get into the healthcare field fast can take this route to establish a long-term career as a CNA or use it as a way to get a foot in the health care door.

To become a CNA in Houston, you must be at least 16 years of age. A high school diploma or GED isn’t needed. However, individual training programs might require a student to be at least 18 years of age with a high school diploma or GED. Students must also have their immunizations, as well as pass a background check.

Any training program must include at least 100 hours with 60 of those hours dedicated to the classroom and 40 of those hours spent on clinical training in a nursing home or other qualified facility. During the classroom training portion of the course, 16 introductory hours must be completed before any direct resident care can be provided. The total amount of time for the average course is four to six weeks, depending on the training program’s facilitator and how many classes it takes to complete the required 100 hours.

During the training program, the student will learn basic patient care which includes tasks such as helping a patient with meals, getting dressed, bathing, getting to and from appointments, taking patient vital signs, setting up and assisting with medical equipment, keeping the environment clean, and reporting all observations to the registered nurse that oversees the case. Many of these tasks are common in home health care environments, but many are also common in senior care facilities and hospitals.

Once you have your CNA certification, it’s time to explore job opportunities. CNAs can work in hospitals, hospice centers, nursing homes, home health environments, and other types of assisted living facilities. Currently, a CNA can expect to make over $28,000 per year. However, this can top out at over $38,000 per year, depending on where you work. As demand increases pay usually increases as well.

The typical job description for a CNA in Houston is helping patients with everyday tasks whether in a home or nursing environment. if a CNA Works in a hospital, one common task is to keep the hospital beds clean, assist the Registered Nurse on duty as needed, and help patients with tasks such as going to the bathroom or taking a shower. While on the job, CNAs tend to work with charting software, health information software, and even billing software.

When you have landed a job at a facility or as a home health nurse, you have to be able to get around. Houston has a number of transit options that you can use to get where you need to be on time. However, Houston is classified as an “automobile-dependent” city because 77% of commuters drive to and from work. Nonetheless, the walkability of the city has been growing. It’s also becoming more bicycle-friendly.

If you prefer public transit, light rail, paratransit, and high-occupancy vehicle lanes are provided by the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County. The service area covers over 1,300 square miles. The bus network carries nearly 300,000 passengers a day on its 1,200 buses that run 75 routes.

With so many options, including the 25,000 miles of roadway that laces through the metro area, you can get where you need to go when you need to go there. Just keep toll roads in mind if you are driving yourself. The tolls are operated by the Fort Bend County Toll Road Authority and the Harris County Toll Road Authority. As a commuter, you can obtain a pass that allows you to move through the tolls quickly without having to pay every time you encounter one.

If Houston sounds like a city you want to work in as a CNA, you need to find a program that works for you. The Houston Community College Northeast has such a program for you to explore. Located in 6815 Rustic, you can get the required hours needed to take the state certification exam. The program instructor will be a nurse holding a Texas license. Some training topics include patient rights, how patients should be treated, and patient care. It’s the responsibility of the instructor to ensure students don’t perform any skills in which they aren’t proficient. You will have to contact the Houston Community College Northeast to obtain information about their schedule and the tuition cost for the particular time you will be taking the course. This is a good opportunity for you to get the necessary training within months rather than years, which gives you a good foundation for advancing your nursing career.

If you don’t want to pay the tuition but still want the certification, it is good to look for a free training option. For instance, Park Manor-Cypress Station nursing home and rehab center will let students train on the job while also earning a wage. Once training is complete, you can sit for the state Nurse Aide exam. Even if this isn’t the program you enroll in, it’s important to ensure that the nursing home or facility offering the training is approved by the state. If you want to take the classroom route through a local school or health care training center, you can look for scholarships or grants. Workforce Solutions is a good place to look for such opportunities. If you want to obtain a grant, Volunteers of America offers a Health Professionals Opportunity Grant that will pay for your education if it is awarded to you. These are just examples of the free CNA education opportunities that are available.