A career as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) is both rewarding and challenging. CNAs work closely with patients and play a vital role in healthcare. To become a CNA, you must pass the CNA exam, which assesses your knowledge and skills. To help you ace the exam, we’ve compiled a comprehensive practice test for cna exam together with study tips and helpful information.
Preparing for the CNA Exam
To effectively prepare for the CNA exam, follow these steps:
- Review your state’s CNA exam requirements: Requirements vary by state, so familiarize yourself with your state’s specific requirements.
- Enroll in a CNA training program: A state-approved training program will provide you with the necessary knowledge and skills to pass the exam.
- Study regularly: Consistently review course materials, textbooks, and notes. Create a study schedule that works for you and stick to it.
- Practice makes perfect: Take advantage of practice tests and quizzes to identify areas where you need to improve.
- Seek support: Connect with classmates, instructors, and CNAs for additional guidance, support, and advice.
Skills for the CNA Exam
The skills evaluation portion of the CNA exam requires you to demonstrate your competency in performing essential nursing assistant tasks. You’ll be randomly assigned five skills to perform, which may include:
- Handwashing: Proper hand hygiene is crucial in healthcare settings to prevent the spread of infections. CNAs must know the correct handwashing technique, including wetting hands, applying soap, scrubbing for at least 20 seconds, rinsing, and drying. The CNA exam may test your knowledge of when handwashing is necessary, such as before and after patient contact, as well as your ability to demonstrate the proper technique.
- Taking vital signs: CNAs are responsible for monitoring patients’ vital signs, such as blood pressure, pulse, and respiration. During the CNA exam, you may be asked to demonstrate how to correctly measure and record these vital signs using appropriate equipment and techniques, ensuring accuracy and patient safety.
- Transferring patients: CNAs often assist in moving patients between beds, wheelchairs, and other equipment. The CNA exam may require you to demonstrate proper patient transfer techniques, emphasizing body mechanics, safety precautions, and effective communication with the patient.
- Bed making: CNAs must know how to make a patient’s bed correctly, ensuring comfort and cleanliness. During the skills evaluation, you may be asked to demonstrate making an unoccupied or occupied bed, including proper positioning of linens, infection control measures, and maintaining patient safety and privacy.
- Dressing and grooming: Assisting patients with dressing and grooming is an essential part of a CNA’s role in promoting patient dignity and self-esteem. The exam may assess your ability to help patients dress, brush their hair, and perform other personal care tasks while maintaining their privacy and respecting their preferences.
- Feeding: CNAs often help patients with eating and drinking, ensuring proper nutrition and hydration. The skills evaluation may test your ability to assist patients with feeding, including positioning, monitoring for signs of choking, and accurately recording food and fluid intake.
- Range of motion exercises: To help maintain or improve patients’ mobility, CNAs may assist with range of motion exercises. The exam may require you to demonstrate how to correctly perform passive or active range of motion exercises, ensuring patient comfort and safety.
- Catheter care: CNAs are responsible for providing routine catheter care, which includes cleaning the area around the catheter and monitoring for signs of infection. The skills evaluation may assess your ability to perform catheter care using proper technique and infection control measures.
- Perineal care: Providing perineal care is essential for maintaining patients’ hygiene and preventing infections. During the CNA exam, you may be asked to demonstrate perineal care for a male or female patient, following proper technique and ensuring patient privacy and comfort.
- Isolation precautions: CNAs must understand and follow isolation precautions to prevent the spread of infections. The exam may assess your knowledge of various types of isolation, such as contact, droplet, and airborne, as well as your ability to correctly don and remove personal protective equipment (PPE) and follow other infection control measures.
CNA Final Exam – 100 Questions
The CNA final exam consists of two parts: a written (knowledge) exam and a skills evaluation. The written exam typically consists of 60 to 70 multiple-choice questions, and the skills evaluation involves demonstrating five essential nursing assistant skills.
To help you prepare for the written portion of the exam, we’ve created a practice test with 100 questions. This practice test covers various topics you’ll encounter on the exam, including communication, infection control, safety, and patient care.

Practice Questions for CNA Exam
In addition to our comprehensive 100-question practice test, we’ve also provided a few sample practice questions for CNA exam below. These questions focus on different aspects of the CNA exam, giving you a taste of what to expect.
- Which of the following is an essential part of effective communication with patients?
a) Speaking loudly
b) Using medical jargon
c) Active listening
d) Interrupting patients - What is the proper procedure for handwashing?
a) Wet hands, apply soap, scrub for 10 seconds, rinse, and dry
b) Wet hands, apply soap, scrub for 20 seconds, rinse, and dry
c) Wet hands, apply soap, scrub for 30 seconds, rinse, and dry
d) Wet hands, apply soap, scrub for 40 seconds, rinse, and dry - When providing care for a patient with dementia, it’s essential to:
a) Maintain a consistent routine
b) Make sudden changes in their environment
c) Avoid offering choices
d) Use complex instructions - What should a CNA do if they encounter an unresponsive patient?
a) Call for help and initiate the emergency response plan
b) Attempt to wake the patient by shaking them
c) Leave the room and inform the nurse later
d) Check the patient’s chart for any instructions - What is the primary purpose of a body mechanics?
a) To ensure proper patient positioning
b) To prevent injury to both the caregiver and the patient
c) To maintain a clean environment
d) To promote patient independence - Which of the following is a sign of a potential pressure ulcer?
a) Red or discolored skin that does not blanch when touched
b) Swelling around a joint
c) Dry, cracked skin
d) A rash with small red bumps - When providing mouth care for an unconscious patient, the patient should be positioned:
a) Lying flat on their back
b) In the supine position
c) In the prone position
d) With their head turned to the side - A CNA should report which of the following observations to the nurse immediately?
a) A patient who is sleeping soundly
b) A patient who has a sudden change in mental status
c) A patient who requests a glass of water
d) A patient who needs assistance with dressing - What should a CNA do when encountering a fire in a patient’s room?
a) Attempt to extinguish the fire themselves
b) Close the door, activate the fire alarm, and report the fire
c) Evacuate all patients on the floor immediately
d) Call the nurse and wait for further instructions - When documenting in a patient’s chart, a CNA should:
a) Use abbreviations and acronyms to save time
b) Use pencil so that errors can be easily corrected
c) Document only the tasks they have completed themselves
d) Write subjective opinions about the patient’s condition - What is the proper way to dispose of soiled gloves?
a) Place them in the regular trash bin
b) Rinse them off and put them in the designated biohazard container
c) Remove them inside out and place them in the designated biohazard container
d) Leave them on the bedside table for the nurse to dispose of
How to Study for the CNA Exam?
Studying for the CNA exam requires a combination of reviewing course materials, utilizing practice tests, and practicing essential nursing assistant skills. Here are some tips and strategies to help you study effectively:
- Develop a study schedule: Creating a study schedule helps you manage your time and ensures you cover all relevant topics. Allocate specific time slots to study different subjects and stick to your plan. Include breaks to avoid burnout and maintain your focus.
- Use a variety of study materials: Diversify your study materials to enhance your learning experience. Use textbooks, lecture notes, online resources, videos, and practice tests. This variety keeps your study sessions engaging and helps reinforce your understanding of different topics.
- Use mnemonic devices: Mnemonic devices are memory aids that help you remember important information. They can be particularly helpful for remembering lists, sequences, or steps in a procedure. Examples of mnemonic devices include acronyms, rhymes, and visualization.
- Focus on both knowledge and skills: Divide your study time between learning the theoretical knowledge needed for the written exam and practicing the hands-on skills required for the skills evaluation. This balanced approach ensures you are well-prepared for both components of the CNA exam.
- Practice with a partner: Team up with a fellow student or a friend to practice nursing assistant skills. Practicing with a partner allows you to receive feedback, correct mistakes, and improve your technique.
- Utilize practice tests and quizzes: Regularly taking practice tests and quizzes helps you identify your strengths and weaknesses. Use the results to adjust your study plan and focus on areas that need improvement. Keep track of your progress and aim to improve your scores over time.
- Create flashcards: Flashcards are a great tool for reviewing and reinforcing your knowledge. Create flashcards for essential terms, concepts, and procedures. Review them regularly and shuffle them to ensure you’re not just memorizing the order of the cards.
- Teach someone else: Teaching a concept or skill to someone else can help solidify your understanding. Explaining a topic in your own words requires a deep understanding of the subject matter and can highlight areas where you need further clarification.
- Seek support: Reach out to classmates, instructors, or experienced CNAs for additional guidance, support, and advice. Discussing concepts, asking questions, and sharing study tips can help you and your peers prepare more effectively for the exam.
- Stay healthy and manage stress: Take care of yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally as you prepare for the CNA exam. Get enough sleep, eat well, and engage in regular exercise. Practice stress management techniques, such as deep breathing exercises, meditation, or yoga, to maintain a balanced and focused mindset.
We wish you the best of luck for your exam! Go ACE it 😊
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