Aims Community College Begins Acute Care Nurse Aide Program in Collaboration with Hospitals

This program provides an additional credential for certified nurse aides (CNAs) to equip them to work in a hospital environment. 

The standard CNA program prepares graduates to work in rehabilitation centers, nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Federal law mandates that CNAs get clinical experience at long-term care facilities. The basic CNA curriculum is, therefore, focused on long-term care applications. 

Hospitals employ CNAs but require additional in-house training to obtain unique skills in a fast-paced hospital setting. “In acute care, a patient's health can change minute by minute,” explains Aims Professor of Nurse Aide and Medical Prep, Heather Brown. “CNAs can level up with a stackable credential like this to make them more marketable in acute care because they have the necessary advanced skills.” She said, “This is a great step for current CNAs to gain confidence and experience in acute care before beginning nursing school.”

Brown will teach this new acute CNA course since most of her experience is in critical care, inside and outside a hospital. “I'm excited to teach CNAs these advanced skills so they are better prepared to work in the hospital environment.”

Input from Hospitals 

Local healthcare partners Banner Health and UCHealth expressed a desire for CNAs to enter the industry with a mastery of some additional proficiencies to prepare them to work at a hospital. Representatives from these organizations helped design the curriculum. 

Maude Becker, the UCHealth Director of Professional Development, appreciates the partnership with Aims, as the college asks her questions like, “What's new? What do you need? What can we do with our CNAs so they are marketable?” This led to UCHealth sharing its internal training materials with Aims and allowed instructors to observe training sessions. 

Supervisor of Nursing Support Programs with UCHealth, Judy Davidson, also applauds the program. “Aims developed this very well because they require a foundational CNA program and students are ready to go to any long-term care facility,” she said. “This is just that other layer on top of it, and they’re solidly set up for success in acute care. That's expanded their options.”

Phoebe Phelps, HR Program Specialist with Banner Health, hopes this program will reduce training time for new staff. “We won't have to spend as much time and resources upskilling these CNAs,” she said. “They will already have those competencies coming in the door.” Phelps believes the program will benefit CNAs starting their hospital careers. “It will help them enter the career easier and smoother, knowing what it looks like when they have an emergency on day one.”

Acute Nurse Aide Certificate

The Acute Nurse Aide Certificate is a 5-week program that covers:

• the role of CNA in a hospital
• hospital setting skills above basic CNA
• Advanced skills in:
  • respiratory and cardiovascular monitoring
  • urinary care 
  • nutrition care
  • sterile technique
  • surgical patient care
  • hospital emergency procedures
• 30 clinical hours in the hospital setting

Students must hold a current CNA license to begin this program. This credential is ideal for people who want to provide care to the community by working at a hospital. 

Admission to the Acute Care Nurse Aide Certificate program requires attending a mandatory orientation session. This session covers registration details and important information about class requirements. The next sessions are scheduled on September 17 at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. The orientations are held on the Greeley Campus at the Allied Health and Sciences Building in room 026. 

Classes for the first cohort start in mid-October. 

To learn more about this program, please visit aims.co/acute-care.