USA Healthcare’s North Alabama nursing homes were some of the first to take advantage of a new certification that allows nursing assistants to administer medication to help lighten some of the load for nurses who may be facing a heavier workload while in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Medication Assistant Certification program offers a certification that allows nursing assistants to administer certain routine medications to residents in nursing homes under the direct supervision of a licensed nurse.

The new certification was first rolled out at the end of 2020, and USA Healthcare has partnered with Calhoun Community College to teach the course on-site, said USA Healthcare Community Relations Director Stephanie Coleman.

She said the first two licenses given out for the certification went to two of the nursing assistants at the Falkville Health & Rehab Center, and a total of four nursing assistants with the new certification are now at work in the facility. 

Coleman said eight more nursing assistants have just started the course to work as medication aides in USA Healthcare’s other nursing homes in North Alabama, which include the Cullman Health & Rehab Center, The Folsom Center and Woodland Village. 

USA Healthcare Director of Clinical and Education Services Shiela Johnson said the new certification will allow the facilities’ Certified Nursing Assistants to take on the responsibility of administering medication to residents while being supervised by a nurse. 

“Right now, as CNAs, they are not allowed to pass medications in a skilled nursing facility,” she said. “Once they go through this class and take a proctored test, they earn the certification that allows them to pass medications to our residents.”

By allowing CNAs to perform that extra work, that frees up nurses to focus more on observation and addressing any acute needs or conditions that may occur, Johnson said. 

She said the program to acquire the Medication Assistant Certification is a three-week, 100-hour course focused on the knowledge and safety of medicine administration, featuring 60 hours of classroom and lab time and 40 clinical hours of working on the floor with a nurse.

While USA Healthcare’s nursing facilities have been some of the earliest to bring in personnel with the new certification, Johnson said she anticipates many nursing homes in Alabama to work to get their nursing assistants certified to take on the extra duties. 

“I think every skilled nursing facility is going to take advantage of the opportunity to have medication aides in their facilities,” she said.

Wallace State Community College recently announced that it will also be offering a part-time medication assistant training program, with four weeks of classroom and lab and two weeks of clinical rotation. 

The medication assistant class will at Wallace State will be held Feb. 8-March 5, from 8 a.m. to 3:10 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The cost is $900 and includes all course materials, malpractice insurance and drug screening. Additional fees and expenses and prerequisites apply.

For more information or to register, contact the Center for Career and Workforce Development at 256-352-8386 or visit www.wsccalumni.org/ccwd.