DC CNA study plan
DC CNA · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Personal Care and Activities of Daily Living
Identify the sequence and safety steps for a complete bed bath, partial bath, and perineal care, and recite them without notes
Demonstrate hand hygiene, glove use, and privacy draping before every personal-care task in a practice lab
Perform oral care, denture care, nail care, and hair care on a manikin while narrating each step aloud
Explain how to assist a resident with dressing, toileting, and ambulation while preserving dignity and promoting independence
Your checkpoint
Completed 30-step personal care skills checklist with every critical safety step performed correctly in one unassisted run-through
Personal Care and Activities of Daily Living & Basic Nursing Skills (vital signs, positioning, specimen collection, wound and catheter care)
Measure and record temperature, pulse, respirations, blood pressure, and pulse oximetry accurately on three practice partners
Position a resident in supine, lateral, Fowler's, and Sims' positions and identify one contraindication for each
Demonstrate range-of-motion exercises and transfer techniques with a gait belt while verbalizing fall precautions
Describe the nurse aide's role in collecting a clean-catch urine specimen and a stool specimen
Your checkpoint
Vital signs log of 10 measurements with all values within the accepted range of the instructor's readings and a written position/transfer summary
Basic Nursing Skills (vital signs, positioning, specimen collection, wound and catheter care) & Safety, Emergency Response, and Infection Control
Sequence the steps for applying and removing PPE and explain when each type of precaution is used
Explain standard precautions and identify which tasks require soap-and-water handwashing versus alcohol-based sanitizer
Describe catheter care, perineal hygiene, and observation/reporting of signs of urinary tract infection
Outline the steps for simple wound care and for reporting changes in wound appearance
Your checkpoint
One-page infection-control quick-reference sheet covering PPE order, hand hygiene indications, and three transmission-based precautions, self-tested to 90% recall
Safety, Emergency Response, and Infection Control
Recite the emergency response sequence for choking, falls, bleeding, and suspected stroke
Demonstrate the Heimlich maneuver and describe when to call for help versus begin CPR
Identify fire safety procedures including RACE and PASS and the location of alarms and exits in a practice setting
List environmental hazards and the corrective action for each in a mock resident room
Your checkpoint
Passed a 40-question timed safety and emergency quiz with a score of 80% or higher
Resident Rights, Legal, and Ethical Issues & Roles, Responsibilities, and Scope of Practice of the Nurse Aide
Summarize each resident right and give one example of how a nurse aide protects it during daily care
Distinguish the nurse aide's scope of practice from tasks reserved for licensed nurses and identify when to report to the charge nurse
Explain how to respond to a resident refusal of care and how to document and report it
Describe confidentiality rules and correct handling of a resident's personal information and belongings
Your checkpoint
Written list of 10 scenarios each labeled as within or outside the nurse aide's scope, with a one-sentence justification, reviewed against the state curriculum
Communication and Interpersonal Skills & Mental Health, Psychosocial Needs, and Care of the Cognitively Impaired
Demonstrate active listening and open-ended questioning in three role-played resident conversations
Adapt communication for a resident with hearing loss, a resident with aphasia, and a resident who is non-verbal
Identify common behaviors in dementia and rehearse redirection, validation, and reality-orientation responses
Explain how to report observed changes in mood, appetite, or behavior to the charge nurse
Your checkpoint
Role-play evaluation form completed for three communication scenarios with a passing rating on each required technique
Mental Health, Psychosocial Needs, and Care of the Cognitively Impaired & Nutrition, Hydration, and Fluid Intake
Describe safe feeding techniques including positioning, pacing, aspiration precautions, and dysphagia signs to report
Calculate and record fluid intake and output for a 24-hour mock shift and identify abnormal findings
List food groups and modified diets and match each to a resident profile
Explain how to encourage hydration and how to recognize and report dehydration
Your checkpoint
Completed 24-hour intake-and-output worksheet with all entries converted to milliliters and one written summary of any values requiring reporting
Personal Care and Activities of Daily Living & Basic Nursing Skills (vital signs, positioning, specimen collection, wound and catheter care) & Safety, Emergency Response, and Infection Control
Complete a full timed practice exam covering all eight domains and review every missed item
Re-demonstrate the five highest-weight skills from domains 1, 2, and 3 without prompting
State three weak areas from practice scores and one corrective action for each
Recite the chain of reporting and emergency-call procedure from memory
Your checkpoint
Full-length practice exam scored at or above 85% plus a completed remediation sheet listing every missed question and its corrected rationale
Milestones
Week 2: Perform 10 vital sign sets and three resident transfers with 100% accuracy on critical safety steps
Week 4: Score 80% or higher on the safety and emergency quiz and demonstrate PPE donning and doffing in the correct order
Week 6: Pass all three communication role-plays and correctly classify 10 scope-of-practice scenarios
Week 8: Score 85% or higher on a full-length practice exam covering all eight domains with no domain below 75%