CNA Training Online Offers Exciting Opportunities for Single Parents

CNA training online courses are a new venue for people to break into the ever-expanding healthcare industry. In stark contrast to other fields, the number of available healthcare jobs continues to increase.

The Internet has changed everyday life in a multitude of ways, especially in the education field. A growing amount of students are opting to complete most of their coursework through distance learning as opposed to traditional classrooms.

This holds true for prospective Certified Nursing Assistants, or CNAs. CNA online training is a great alternative to courses that used to only be offered at community colleges, Red Cross centers, nursing homes and hospitals.

There are practical and basic advantages to taking CNA training classes online. For example, single parents have the freedom to mold their class schedule around their parenting responsibilities. With online CNA classes, students can complete necessary classwork without sacrificing time with their children.

Workers who need steady employment to pay bills can continue to work while going to school. Job hours can be strict, but CNA students can work around them by taking online classes with flexible schedules.

The student, not the school, dictates when the student studies, which is as an aspect that sets distance learning apart from traditional classes.

An Increasing Trend of CNA Online Training

Thanks to medical and scientific technological advancements, the average lifespan of people in the United States is rising. And now that the Baby Boomers are beginning to age, the healthcare field has a great need for more workers, and the number of trained workers falls short of this demand.

The demand for more employees proves beneficial to a particular industry. But a healthcare worker shortage has steep consequences. It is essential to fill this deficit.

Some Internet programs tout a four-day course of CNA training and test preparation for only $250. Hospitals, the Red Cross, community colleges and nursing homes offer a full 75-hour CNA course for about $300.

Because online schools, such as Kaplan.com and the Phoenix.edu, know that people are desperately needed in the healthcare industry, these schools offer CNA classes for less money than traditional, physical learning institutions.

One big exception is studying at nursing home. Prospective CNAs receive hands-on, unpaid training as a way to gain knowledge of the profession.

Will CNA Training Online Meet Certification Requirements?

Those seeking CNA accreditation have to finish hands-on clinicals under a physician or a Registered Nurse's, or RN's, supervision. A typical CNA apprenticeship lasts approximately 16 hours.

CNAs in the United States are also referred to Home Health Aides, or HHAs, Nursing Assistant-Registereds, or NARs, Patient Care Assistants, or PCAs, and State Tested Nursing Aides, or STNAs. Whatever the name, about 1.5 million people were employed as such in 2008 per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS also states that by 2018, the need for healthcare professionals will increase 18 percent.

Patient, Web-browsing pros can locate CNA online training for free. However, it is imperative to steer clear of scams that release computer viruses or steal money.

There is a world of promise in this sub-field of healthcare, with CNA workers in California earning more than $16 per hour. Future furthering of education can net CNAs more money and seniority in the nursing industry.

After completing 75 hours of clinicals and coursework, CNA hopefuls who want to be certified must pass an exam that consists of a skills portion and a written portion. Each part is completed on the same day, lasting no more than five and one-half hours. Often, students are given same-day exam results.

For those who finish the classroom part of their online, or traditional, CNA training program, there is nothing but a glass ceiling in the caregiver profession.