Free California CNA Exam Flashcards

The California Department of Public Health controls CNA eligibility, application review, training-program approval, criminal-record clearance, registry placement, renewal, and misconduct review.

D&S Headmaster administers California CNA testing through TMU. It handles scheduling, test events, knowledge testing, skills scoring, and candidate handbook rules.

Certification requires both parts: a computer-based knowledge exam and a hands-on manual skills test. Passing only one part is not enough for registry placement.

The knowledge exam has 75 multiple-choice questions, a 60-minute time limit, and a 75% passing score. Pace steadily and stay within CNA scope.

The skills test assigns 3 or 4 manual tasks in 30 minutes. One first task includes embedded soap-and-water handwashing.

Candidates have three attempts to pass each exam portion within two years of training completion. If attempts or the window are exhausted, new approved training is required.

CDPH 283B is the Certified Nurse Assistant Initial Application. Name, birth date, training completion, Live Scan, and TMU records should match to avoid delays.

Live Scan fingerprinting supports the criminal-record clearance required by CDPH. A clearance issue is handled by CDPH, not by the test evaluator.

The local California pathway requires 160 total NATP hours: 60 classroom/theory hours and 100 supervised clinical hours. Skills lab practice may be useful but is separate.

Remote proctoring may be available for the knowledge exam only. The skills test remains a live performance of assigned care tasks.

A CNA observes, assists, measures, records, and reports delegated care under licensed nurse supervision. The CNA does not diagnose, prescribe, or create care plans.

Medication administration, sterile procedures, catheter insertion, changing treatment orders, and independent clinical decisions are outside normal CNA scope unless a specific lawful policy says otherwise.

Stop and ask the nurse before acting. A CNA is responsible for accepting only tasks within training, scope, care-plan directions, and facility policy.

Report objective changes such as swelling, pain, weakness, drainage, fever, confusion, or shortness of breath. Do not label the condition or promise a diagnosis.

Use the facility chain of command when a resident risk is not addressed. A serious safety concern should not be dropped because one person is busy.

Chart facts: what was seen, heard, measured, or done. Avoid blame, guesses, opinions, unapproved abbreviations, and charting care before it happens.

Dignity means respectful speech, privacy during care, choice when safe, clean appearance, prompt response, and never shaming or threatening the resident.

A resident may refuse care. The CNA should not force the task; instead, listen, try a respectful approach if appropriate, and report the refusal to the nurse.

Share resident information only with authorized staff for care-related reasons. Hallway talk, social media posts, and casual family updates can violate privacy.

Report suspected abuse, neglect, exploitation, abandonment, or missing property through required channels. Do not confront the suspected abuser or investigate on your own.

Restraints are never for staff convenience. They must follow law, an order or care plan, facility policy, monitoring requirements, and the resident's rights.

Use standard precautions with every resident, regardless of diagnosis. Choose hand hygiene, gloves, masks, gowns, and eye protection based on expected exposure.

Gloves do not replace hand hygiene. Clean hands before putting gloves on and after removing them, and change gloves when moving from dirty to clean care.

Use soap and water when hands are visibly soiled, after certain body-fluid tasks, and whenever the skill checklist requires handwashing. Avoid recontaminating clean hands.

Many PPE errors happen during removal. Touch only clean areas when possible, keep contaminated surfaces away from clothing, discard PPE correctly, and perform hand hygiene.

Keep soiled linen away from the uniform, do not shake it, and place it in the correct container. Shaking linen can spread microorganisms.

Report new cough, fever, diarrhea, draining wounds, rash, or other infection signs promptly so the nurse can decide whether extra precautions are needed.

Keep the bed low, wheels locked, call light within reach, pathway clear, footwear safe, and transfer help consistent with the care plan.

Call the nurse and stay with the resident. Do not move the resident unless there is immediate danger, because movement could worsen an injury.

Before a transfer, lock bed and wheelchair brakes, apply needed footwear, use the care-plan device, keep a wide base, and avoid twisting.

Do not try to catch the full weight. Widen your stance, protect the head as much as possible, ease the resident to the floor, and call for help.

RACE means Rescue anyone in immediate danger, Alarm, Contain by closing doors, and Extinguish or Evacuate according to facility procedure.

Oxygen supports combustion. Keep flames, smoking materials, and unsafe electrical equipment away, and do not adjust flow unless trained and directed by policy.

Count respirations without making the resident change their breathing pattern. Observe rate, rhythm, effort, and signs of distress, then report abnormal changes.

Use the correct cuff on the bare upper arm, keep the resident supported and quiet, and follow facility reporting rules for abnormal or sudden changes.

Record intake and output in milliliters when assigned. Measure at eye level on a flat surface and document the actual value, not a rounded guess.

Report low output, dark urine, blood, cloudiness, new odor with symptoms, pain, burning, leakage, or catheter pulling. These changes need nursing assessment.

Measure only what the resident consumed, calculate the required amount accurately, and record in the units requested by the test or facility form.

Bathing protects dignity, skin health, and comfort. Provide privacy, expose only the area being washed, encourage independence, and report skin changes.

Use privacy, gloves, clean-to-dirty technique, and front-to-back wiping for female perineal care. Change cloth areas as they become soiled.

Keep the drainage bag below bladder level and off the floor. Avoid tugging the catheter and report pain, leakage, blood, or poor drainage.

Oral care helps prevent infection, pain, odor, and aspiration risk. Handle dentures carefully and report mouth sores, bleeding, loose teeth, or pain.

Dress the weak or affected side first. When undressing, remove clothing from the strong or unaffected side first to reduce pulling and discomfort.

Support the limb above and below the joint, move smoothly through the normal range, and stop if pain or resistance occurs. Never force movement.

Restorative care helps residents maintain or regain function. CNAs support independence by following the care plan, encouraging safe effort, and reporting changes.

Apply the belt snugly over clothing at the waist, stand on the weak side when appropriate, walk slightly behind and to the side, and monitor tolerance.

Prevent pressure injuries through repositioning, skin checks, hygiene after incontinence, nutrition, hydration, and pressure relief. Do not massage reddened bony areas.

Approach from the front, use the resident's name, speak calmly, give one instruction at a time, and allow extra time for response.

Do not argue or shame the resident. Validate feelings when appropriate, redirect to a safe activity, reduce triggers, and report sudden confusion.

Before finishing a skill, leave the resident safe and comfortable, lower the bed when required, place the call light within reach, clean the area, and perform hand hygiene.