Allied Health – Credit - CNA/HHA

Program Overview:

Play a Critical Role in People's Lives Every Day

Chart a patient’s vital signs every hour to ensure nothing has changed. Monitor and change bandages on a patient’s wounds. Help a patient eat lunch in their home. Reposition a bed-ridden patient so they don’t get bed sores. Talk with a patient at a residential home about the book she is reading. Careers being a nursing assistant and home health aide are extremely vital to helping people recover from an injury, find comfort through a long illness, or feel engaged in a senior center.

Nurses and aides are essential to our healthcare system and maintaining people’s health and well-being. Isolation from illness, injury, or older age is just as much of a health concern as the issues those patients are dealing with. Being a nursing assistant or home health aide requires a lot of attention to detail, compassion, patience, and listening skills. You will be constantly meeting new people who are at their most vulnerable moments in life attending to their needs as you also inform healthcare supervisors on their condition.

LASC offers a 10-week program with everything you need to become eligible for State certification and employment as a Nursing Assistant or Health Home Aide in long-term care facilities settings. Nursing careers continue to be in high demand, and with a career as a nursing assistant or home health aide, you will always find a rewarding experience to help someone in their time of need.

Below, find out what requirements you’ll need and how to apply to this program today so you can begin your nursing assistant career!

Contact
Director/Chairperson
Indiana McClellan
Phone
(323) 241-5461
Email
@email
Office Location
School of Career & Technical Education, Room 132
Office Hours
Mondays to Fridays: 9:30AM - 4:00PM

Department
Nursing

Pathway
Health and Human Services

Careers in Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide

Here are a few careers and their salaries you could have with a Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide certificate:

Career information below taken from bls.gov December 2019. Go to bls.gov for most current career information.

RNs provide and coordinate patient care, educate patients, and the public about various health conditions.

Data for Los Angeles/Long Beach/Anaheim

Typical Education Level: Salary: Hourly Median Wage:
Postsecondary nondegree award $33,620/year $16.16/hour
Work Experience in a Related Occupation: Job Outlook 2018-2028: Number of Jobs 2018:
None needed 2% increase (slower than average) 39,790

Help people with disabilities, chronic illnesses, or cognitive impairment by assisting in their daily living activities.

Data for Los Angeles/Long Beach/Anaheim

Typical Education Level: Salary: Hourly Median Wage:
High School Diploma or equivalent $34,220/year $16.45/hour
Work Experience in a Related Occupation: Job Outlbook 2018-2028: Number of Jobs 2018:
None needed -4% decrease (decline) 9,570

Provide basic nursing care.

Data for Los Angeles/Long Beach/Anaheim

Typical Education Level: Salary: Hourly Median Wage:
Postsecondary nondegree award $54,000/year $25.96/hour
Work Experience in a Related Occupation: Job Outlook 2018-2028: Number of Jobs 2018:
None needed 4% increase (as fast as average) 24,220

Complete administrative and clinical tasks in hospitals, offices of physicians, and other healthcare facilities.

Data for Los Angeles/Long Beach/Anaheim

Typical Education Level: Salary: Hourly Median Wage:
Postsecondary nondegree award $36,920/year $17.75/hour
Work Experience in a Related Occupation: Job Outlook 2018-2028: Number of Jobs 2018:
None needed 7% increase (faster than average) 33,280

Complete administrative and clinical tasks in hospitals, offices of physicians, and other healthcare facilities.

Data for Los Angeles/Long Beach/Anaheim

Typical Education Level: Salary: Hourly Median Wage:
Postsecondary nondegree award $41,930/year $20.16/hour
Work Experience in a Related Occupation: Job Outlook 2018-2028: Number of Jobs 2018:
None needed 4% increase (as fast as average) 4,520

What You’ll Learn at LASC in the Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide program

You can get a Certificate of Achievement as a Nursing Assistant (CNA) or as a Home Health Aide (CHHA) at LASC where you have both clinical experience and academic theory to gain the knowledge you need to have a successful career:

  • Gain critical-thinking, logic, and communication skills as you learn how assist patients and other healthcare professionals in reporting and treating patients’ health issues in a timely manner.
  • Discover best methods and practices on how to communicate with patients and their families as you learn the intricacies of patient care, completing different medical procedures, and how to keep information on your patients scheduled and organized.
  • Learn patient care, such as safety principles, infection control, methods for providing physical care, and emotional and social support.
  • Once you successfully complete the CNA program, you will be able to take the Certified Licensing Examination to become a Certified Nursing Assistant or Home Health Aide and begin your career!

Degrees, Courses, & Requirements

Review LASC’s, and our required course of study for these programs. Go to LASC’s current Course Catalog for specific course information, and find out about how to complete the Nursing Application Process to start your path at LASC to becoming a nurse:

Major Code: 1230.30

Total Required Units: 30

Courses in Health Occupations are designed for those who wish to enter one of the many health career programs in the Los Angeles Community College District and/ or prepare for a job in a related health care position in the Los Angeles area. These courses serve as the foundational knowledge base to enter the Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) and Certified Home Health Aide (HHA) courses and to achieve Certificates of Achievement in each.

The Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) certificate prepares students for a career in an area with a high demand for employment. The CNA provides basic nursing care for patients in hospitals, assisted living, or long-term care. The CNA course consists of both classroom and clinical experiences. The course covers basic theory and skills, such as patient rights, interpersonal skills, infection control, emergencies, body mechanics, patient care skills and procedures, vital signs, nutrition, observation and charting, long-term care, and rehabilitation. The program is approved by the California Department of Public Health. Upon successful completion of the course, students are eligible to apply to take the state of California certification examination for CNA.

Required Courses: Units
ALDHEALTH 021 - Basic Life Support for the Healthcare Provider 0.5
NRS-HCA 056 - Essential Practical Skills for Nurse Assistants 1
NRS-HCA 399A - Nurse Assistant Training Program 6
NRS-HCA 399B - Home Health Aide Training Program 2
TOTAL UNITS 9.5

NEXT SCHEDULED CNA / CNHA SESSION:

FALL 2024

The CNA program includes 72 hours of theory and 112 hours of clinical work.

  • Theory classes are in the evening from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm.*
  • Clinical are scheduled in nursing facilities from 7:00 am to 4:30 pm.*
  • You must attend all classes to complete the required hours.

*See the class schedule for updated class dates and times. Theory and Clinical times subject to change.

Upon successful completion of the program, you will be eligible for the state of California Certification Examination.

  • The State application for certification requires fingerprinting and a background check.
  • Applicants who have been convicted of a criminal offense may not be eligible for certification.
To Apply

Visit the California Department of Public Health website for:

  • Further information on requirements, exceptions, and certification information
  • Program Application
Prerequisites:

There are NO prerequisite courses for the CNA Program

Admission to the Nursing program is granted on a first-come, first-served basis. You will need to meet all the following requirements to be consider for enrollment into the program:

  1. Complete Application for Los Angeles Southwest College and obtain student ID number
  2. Attend orientation/information session and receive your nursing assistant application.
  3. Complete Nursing Assistant Program Application
  4. Physical examination (completed within two months prior to application date).
  5. Proof of vaccination or titer:
  6. Tetanus (within past 10 years).
  7. Hepatitis B
  8. MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella).
  9. Proof of Absence of Tuberculosis (negative skin test or negative chest x-ray within two months prior to application date).
  10. Varicella (Chicken pox - titer or proof of vaccination).
  11. Proof of Flu Shot (within two months prior to application date).
  12. Drug screen (completed within two months prior to application date)
  13. American Heart Association CPR card for the Healthcare Provider
  14. Malpractice insurance with coverage that includes $1,000,000 single occurrence & $3,000,000 aggregate (Choose "California" as state of residence and select "student" to apply) - Go to: www.nso.com or call 800-247-1500 for rates

Applications can be submitted, with all required documents, to the School of Career and Technical Education (SOCTE) Building Room 132 or emailed to lascnurseinfo@lasc.edu

Get Ready Before You Start

If you’re interested in being a nursing assistant, you can begin preparing for it before your first class starts at LASC:

  • Make sure to enroll in LASC, you must be a student of the college in order to start the program.
  • Sign up on the 'Interest List', to receive the most up-to-date information on the program (i.e. flyers, information/orientation sessions, program updates).
  • Once you’re at LASC, make sure to get involved with on-campus clubs and organizations, such as the Future Nurses of America and Toastmasters, or become a student ambassador, or run for student body government. These create new relationships and enhance your resume to show potential employers your commitment to building leadership skills and furthering your healthcare community.

Join the Interest List!

Interested in the CNA program? Want to receive the most up-to-date information on upcoming sessions? Click the button below to join the list!

Spring 2025 CNA Interest List 

LASC End of Program Outcomes

The Student Learning Outcomes include outcomes that are reflected of the six QSEN and four MNOF integrating concepts to promote human flourishing and the development of nursing judgment, professional identify, and a spirit of inquiry.

  • Evaluate nursing care provided to patients, families, and communities across the lifespan from diverse backgrounds in a variety of settings to ensure that it is compassionate, age and culturally appropriate and based on a patient's preferences, values and needs.
  • Collaborate with members of the interprofessional health care team to manage and coordinate the provision of safe, quality care for patients, families, and groups.
  • Demonstrate use of best current evidence and clinical expertise when making clinical decisions in the provision of patient-centered care.
  • Use evidence-based information and patient care technology to communicate relevant patient information, manage care and mitigate error in the provision of safe, quality patient-centered care.
  • Use evidence-based quality improvement processes to effect change in the delivery of patient-centered care.
  • Demonstrate effective use of strategies to mitigate errors and reduce the risk of harm to patients, self and others in healthcare, home, and community settings.
  • Use leadership, management and priority-setting skills in the provision and management of safe, quality patient-centered care.
  • Assimilate integrity and accountability into practices that uphold established regulatory, legal, and ethical principles while providing patient-centered, standard-based nursing care.
  • Provide health-related information to patients, families, and communities using varying teaching methods, which facilitate the acquisition of new knowledge and skills.
  • Model verbal and nonverbal communication strategies that promote an effective exchange of information, development of therapeutic relationships and shared decision making with patients, families, and communities from diverse backgrounds.

Program (Graduate) Outcomes

Student Outside of Building