CNA Certification In Oregon

1. Initial Certification and Testing

Applicants are qualified to take the CNA examination if they meet the following requirements:

• Completed a nurse aide level-1 program program approved by the OSBN in the past 24 months.
• Completed a standardized nursing assistant program program in another state in the last 24 months, which must have lasted for 75 hours.
• Completed program as a medic or military corpsman (this program must meet the OBRA standards) and have had 400 hours of employment as a paid employee in a facility related to nursing within the previous 24 months.
• Graduated from an accredited nursing education program 1 to 3 years ago.
• Completed a national criminal background check.

2. Endorsement

In general, if the applicant is currently or formerly certified in good standing in a state or territory in the U.S., then s/he is eligible for endorsement. In particular, you must meet the following requirements of the OSBN:

• Completed a nurse aide program course which must meet the OBRA standards. You must attach a copy of your completion certificate.
• Worked as a certified nursing assistant for at least 400 hours as a paid CNA in that state in the past 24 months. If you have been certified for a period less than 2 years, then you are not required to fulfill this criterion.
• These 400 hours of paid employment as a nurse aide must be completed under the supervision of a nurse.
• Complete a national criminal background check.

In addition to the above requisites, candidates must also submit the following:

• Program Verification
  Submit a copy of your completion certificate from your nursing assistant program course / program.
• Certification Verification
  You need to provide a written verification from the state where you currently hold your license or where you are most recently certified.

Certification Verification from Your Previous State

Before sending the endorsement application packet, you must:

• Contact your current state of licensure in order to:
  • Find out whether your license is current or expired. If your license has been expired, you cannot apply via endorsement process. Since the fees required for completing the application is non-refundable, you must check the status of your certificate prior submitting the application.
  • Enquire about the fee required to complete the written verification of your certification / license.  Generally, a certain amount of fee is charged by many states for written verification.
• Send the following information or details to the state where you currently hold your CNA license:
  • Complete only the top section of the Verification form.
  • Send the verification form and fee (if applicable) via mail to the respective state where you are presently certified. Request the state to return the completed application directly to the Oregon State Board of Nursing.

The examination in Oregon State is administered by the Headmaster Testing Service. You may apply for testing in either ways:

• Complete the examination application and send it to the Oregon Board of Nursing (OSBN) office. You can download the application form via this link:http://www.oregon.gov/OSBN/pdfs/form/naexampacket.pdf

  OR

• Schedule the exam date and venue.

  If you are directly applying to the OSBN, read the candidate instruction handbook:
  http://www.hdmaster.com/testing/cnatesting/oregon/orformpages/ORCandidateHandbook.pdf

The process to get a nursing assistant certificate in OR when you are or have been certified in any other state or territory in the United States is as follows:

Step 1 – Download the endorsement application form using this link:
http://www.oregon.gov/OSBN/pdfs/form/CNAendorse.pdf

Step 2 – Send the completed form and all the required documents using either of the following methods:

• Fax: 971-673-0652 attn Licensing
• Mail at:
  Oregon State Board of Nursing
  17938 SW Upper Boones Ferry Road
  Portland, Oregon- 97224
• Email: oregon.bn.info@state.or.us

All certified nursing assistant licenses’ remain valid for 2 years. It gets expired at midnight the day before your birthday regardless of whether you were born in an even year or an odd year. If you were born in an even year, the license expires in even years, or if you were born in odd year, it expires in odd years.

Generally, a renewal notice is received from the OSBN around 6 to 8 weeks before the expiry date of your license, assuming that your mailing address is up-to-date with the OSBN office.

Renewal Requirements

In order to renew a CNA license, applicants are required to meet the below eligibility criteria:

• Worked for a minimum of at least 400 hours (around three months, full-time) as a paid certified nursing assistant performing all the duties of a CNA in the past 2 years, immediately preceding the expiration date of the certificate. Work done as a volunteer is not counted in these hours. If you are paid for looking after a family member, then the hours may be counted.
• Carried out authorized duties as mentioned in the rules and law of the OSBN, under the supervision of a registered nurse or a licensed nurse.

Renewal Fees

A fee of $65 is charged to renew the CNA certification which can be paid in the form of money order or check made payable to the OSBN.

Methods to Renew the CNA Certificate

Use either of the following methods to complete your renewal process:

• Online
  https://osbn.oregon.gov/OBNPortal/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabindex=0&tabid=5
• Paper Application
  Use the following link to download the hardcopy of the renewal form:
  http://www.oregon.gov/OSBN/pdfs/form/LIC-701.pdf

If you let your license expire, you may apply for reinstatement of your certification by submitting a renewal application to the OSBN along with the required fees. In case, you fail to renew your license within 60 days of its expiration date, you will be required to reactivate it, as well as complete a national criminal background check.

Use the below link to verify your CNA license in Oregon:
http://osbn.oregon.gov/OSBNVerification/

You may complete the verification by entering either of the following information:

• License Number
• Name

Read the following information to get information about the appropriate documents you will be required to submit along with your application request:

• For Name Change

  To update your name on the Oregon State Board of Nursing, you need to provide a copy of:

  • Documents illustrating the proof of legal name. You may submit the following documents:
  • Birth certificate.
  • Marriage certificate.
  • Final divorce decree – Submit only the pages that indicate the court jurisdiction, signature of the appointed judge in proceedings and stated name restoration (if applicable).
  • Valid passport.
  • Driver’s license or identification card issued in the state of Oregon after January 1, 2009.
  • Copy of court records verifying legal name change, which must include previous and new name(s), court jurisdiction, and signature of the authorizing court official.
• For Address Change

  As such there is no additional document required to update the information. You just need to complete Section 3 of the application form.

The name and / or address change request application can be downloaded from the below link:
http://www.oregon.gov/OSBN/pdfs/form/OSBN-613.pdf

Send the completed request form and all other documents to the OSBN address mentioned above (Refer “Procedure for Application by Endorsement” section of this article).

Question 1 – I’m unable to login on the Board’s official site. I had renewed my license earlier with the same password and now the system is showing an error. What should I do?

Answer – Since the Board has recently updated its website, all the users who registered before April 26, 2009, must register again and generate a new password to use the online renewal system.

Question 2 – Why does the website ask for a Social Security Number?

Answer – It is required by the OSBN to collect the Social Security Number of all the licensees as per the state and federal law.

Question 3 – Isn’t this a security risk if we enter our SSN?

Answer – No. You are secured in terms of connection if you use official website of the OSBN.