RENO - A new option is available for Reno - Sparks community members seeking to fulfill the nursing assistant requirement that students need before entering the nursing program at Truckee Meadows Community College. This efficient alternative is Nurs 129: Basic Nursing Skills, a three-week hands-on class offered during winter session.
The course will be held from Jan. 5 - 23 on the Dandini Campus four days a week, from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Classes will be held Monday - Thursday for the first two weeks, and Tuesday - Friday the third week, due to the Monday holiday. There will be three off-campus clinical days at a long-term skilled nursing facility on Jan. 20, Jan. 21, and Jan. 22. Each clinical day is from 6 a.m. - 2 p.m.
"This is about developing hands-on skills, working with confidence, and becoming comfortable with patients and residents," said Susan Bluhm, nursing assistant professor and coordinator of the program. "Students will learn how to assist people with basic activities of daily life (ADL), and will learn the basics of infection control, safety, and resident rights."
Examples of skills students will learn are measuring vital signs, turning and repositioning patients safely, wearing and removing personal protective equipment, transferring patients from a bed to a wheelchair and feeding a dependent person. Upon successful completion of the basic nursing skills class, students will have met the CNA requirement to apply to the Maxine S. Jacobs Nursing Program, an accredited Associate of Science degree program that prepares graduates to take the NCLEX-RN, a competency-based test given to license candidates for registered nurse, R.N. More admission criteria will apply before acceptance into the Nursing Program, and can be found online at http://www.tmcc.edu/nursing/admission-criteria/
"What sets the winter session class apart from its semester-long counterpart is the intensive nature of the class," Bluhm said. "It allows students to fulfill the nursing program requirement faster than the traditional method. However, the winter session class is not for students wanting to pursue a career as a Certified Nursing Assistant. It will not prepare the student or make them eligible to sit for the C.N.A. state exam."
The instructor, Pamela French, R.N., has more than 30 years combined experience in the fields of nursing and education. French said she is excited to offer this class as a way to help future nursing students.
For more information about the new winter session basic nursing skills class, call the Maxine S. Jacobs Nursing Program office at (775) 673-7115, or Bluhm directly at (775) 673-7180.
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