The PRN credentials checklist

This is the list most healthcare employers work from. Your employer's list is the one that counts, so ask for it early. Each item below says where the requirement comes from.

1. License, certification or registry listing

• Licensed roles (RN, LPN/LVN, dental hygienist, respiratory therapist, PT, OT, SLP): an active license in the state where you'll work, or a multistate privilege where a compact applies. Find your state's board.
• Nurse aides (CNAs): a current listing on your state's nurse aide registry. Federal rules require nursing facilities to check the registry before you work as an aide (42 CFR 483.35), and aides who go 24 months in a row without paid nursing work must retrain or retest.
• Home health aides: proof you completed training and a competency evaluation. Aides in Medicare-certified home health agencies need at least 75 hours of training (42 CFR 484.80).

2. Identity and work authorization

Bring an unexpired photo ID. Every U.S. employer must complete Form I-9 for new employees, so have documents that show your identity and that you can work in the U.S.

3. Health screening

• TB screening. CDC recommends that all U.S. health care personnel be screened for tuberculosis when hired. That includes a risk assessment, a symptom check and a TB test (a blood test or skin test).
• Vaccinations. CDC lists the vaccines health care workers should be up to date on: COVID-19, chickenpox (varicella), flu, hepatitis B, meningococcal, MMR, and Tdap or Td. Employers decide which records they require.

Keep copies of your results and vaccination records in one place. You'll be asked for them again.

4. Life support certification

Many roles require a current Basic Life Support (BLS) or CPR card, and some units require advanced certifications. Ask which ones the employer accepts.

5. Required training

• Bloodborne pathogens. OSHA requires employers whose workers may be exposed to blood to provide bloodborne pathogens training.
• Facility orientation, such as infection control, safety and documentation systems, is usually provided by the employer.
• Continuing education for your license or certificate. Keep your certificates, since boards can audit them.

6. Background and exclusion checks

Expect a background check. Employers also commonly search the HHS Office of Inspector General's list of people excluded from federal health programs.

California notes

• Look up your own license on the DCA License Search before you apply, so you know exactly what an employer will see. CNA and home health aide certificates are on CDPH's certification lookup.
• CNA renewal: 48 hours of in-service training or CEUs in each 2-year period, at least 12 each year.
• RN renewal: 30 contact hours of continuing education every 2 years (the first renewal after passing the NCLEX is exempt).

Keep it all in one place

SHIFTerz keep their credentials in the SHIFTit app, and they travel with them to every facility on the platform. Join SHIFTerz.