Louisiana Nursing Assistant / Nurse Aide Guide
Is a License or Certification needed: To get licensed and work as a nursing assistant or nurse aide in Louisiana, you need to have passed a state-certified nursing assistant program. This will automatically enroll you in the Louisiana State Nurse Aide Registry. You may also take the National Nurse Aide Assessment Program (NNAAP) exam.
Who Grants Certification: The Louisiana Department of Health grants certification to Louisiana nursing assistants and nurse aides.
The Qualifications to become Certified: According to regulations, in order to receive a new nurse aide certification, you must have completed a state-approved nurse aide program within the past 24 months. This program must have a minimum of 80 hours of instruction, 40 classroom hours and 40 clinical experience hours.
How to Apply for Certification: In the state of Louisiana, you can apply online or download the paper application here.
You can also find a list of schools to be trained at here.
How to Apply to Take the Exam: You may call Prometric customer service for information on how to apply for the Louisiana State Nurse Aide exam or see this website.
Test Content: The NNAAP test has two parts, a Skills Evaluation and a Written (or oral) part. Both parts must be passed to be listed on the Louisiana Nurse Aide Registry. The written section is 70 questions in length, 60 are multiple-choice and 10 are reading comprehension questions. Take two pencils with you. You will have two full hours to complete the exam. (The oral exam if given in place of the written exam is 160 questions in length.) The Skills Evaluation will be a 25 minute time period given to complete 5 randomly selected nurse aide skills.
Content topics include:
- Activities of Daily Living – Hygiene, Dressing and Grooming, Nutrition and Hydration, Elimination, Rest/Comfort/Sleep
- Basic Nursing Skills - Infection Control, Safety/Emergency, Therapeutic/Technical Procedures, Data Collection and Reporting
- Restorative Skills – Prevention, Self-care/Independence
- Psychosocial Care Skills – Emotional and Mental Health Needs
- Spiritual and Cultural Needs
- Communication
- Client Rights
- Legal and Ethical Behavior
- Member of the Health Care Team
See the Candidate Information Bulletin for more details.
Certification Renewal and Continuing Education Requirements: In order to keep your certification up to date, you need to have worked at least eight hours in the past 24 months. These must be paid, not volunteer, hours in a home health agency, hospital, hospice agency, nursing home or mental health facility within a two year period. In order to keep up with the continuing education, your employer can send in verification of CEU’s completed. See information on how to test for recertification to renew your nurse aide license.
Contact
LA Nurse Aide Registry
LA State Board of Examiners for Nursing Facility Administrators
5647 Superior Drive
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70816-6049
Phone: 225-295-8575
Fax: 225-295-8578
