Welcome to the McGuire Training Center, a premier destination for launching a fulfilling career in healthcare as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA). Our program is built on a proven, step-by-step approach that guides students from application to certification and employment.
Start by applying for CNA Training at one of our facilities. After a review by our HR team, you’ll begin gaining valuable hands-on experience as a Resident Aide, working with residents and learning foundational skills. You’ll then complete over 75 hours of comprehensive training, including classroom learning, skills labs, and real-life clinical practice in a nursing facility.
With a dedicated team boasting over 120 years of combined nursing experience, we’re proud to have helped over 4,000 students achieve a 90% first-time pass rate on the New York State certification exam.
Whether you’re embarking on a new career or advancing your skills, McGuire Training Center is here to support your journey with flexible class schedules, exceptional instructors, and a welcoming community. Join us in making a difference in people’s lives—starting with your own!
Steps to Becoming a CNA:
Step 1
Apply for Certified Nursing Assistant Training (CNAT) at the facility of your choice
Step 2
Once your application is reviewed, you’ll be contacted by our HR Team
Step 3
Before you begin your CNA training, you may work for a short time as a Resident Aide
Step 4
In order to begin the training, you will need to pass a TABE (Test of Adult Basic Education) for Reading Comprehension. DON’T LET THIS DETER YOU! You can take the test multiple times if needed. Or you cand work in a different department until your Reading Comprehension improves
Step 5
You will have 75+ hours of training:
-
30 hours in the skills lab
-
30 hours in the classroom
-
16 hours of hands-on training in a nursing facility
-
Minimum 80% average to Graduate
Step 6
You will be scheduled for the New York State certification exam within 10 days of graduation
Step 7
After you graduate you will begin orienting to your position at your facility. When you pass the NYS certification exam, you will be a Certified Nursing Assistant!
When is your next Training class?
Every three weeks we start a new class.
How long is the class?
12 days/minimum 75 hours of training.
How do I enroll in training?
We train employees, so the first step is to apply for employment at one of our facilities.
How do I check the status of my application for employment?
Follow up with the facility you applied to.
Is this paid training?
Yes, you will be employed at one of our facilities.
Effective Education – A Decade in Review
If numbers speak volumes, then a lot of noise comes from the McGuire Training Center! This powerhouse of a department, staffed by Program Coordinator Susan Mann RN, Primary Instructors Pam Bastings RN and Deb Glass RN, and Administrative Assistant Alesia Walton, has educated and graduated more than 4,000 certified nursing assistants over the last decade. With more than 120 years of combined nursing experience and a 90% first-time pass rate, their stats are part of a well-executed game plan designed for success.
Susan began her career 1996 as a certified nursing assistant traveling between the McGuire Group’s five Western New York facilities. She held positions as a staff nurse, Unit Coordinator, Resident Care Coordinator and Education Nurse before answering the call in 2014 to take over the company’s Nurse Aide Training program. The training initiative started in the 1990s and has served as the McGuire Group’s main conduit for educating, training and testing certified nursing assistants since that time.
In June 2014, the center moved to its current location in the Compass East building on Michigan Avenue in B
uffalo. The new space provided enhanced opportunities for learning with a classroom, computer and skills labs and testing area. The center also provided flexibility to test graduating classes while simultaneously starting new ones. Before long, class sizes had more than doubled, going from 20 to 50 students on average. The move also meant that the Training Center received approval from New York State to become a regional testing site for other CNA candidates in the area.
So how does one go about getting into the program? The company makes it easy! Candidates can apply for CNA Training at any facility at www.livinglegendshealth.com. Once accepted, students receive more than 75 hours of education during 12 program days. Candidates are taught the essential skills needed for passing the exam and will spend approximately 30 hours in the skills lab, 30 hours in the classroom, and 16 hours in the facilities for hands-on clinical studies. It’s here that future CNAs learn and practice techniques that will make them successful nursing assistants once they graduate.
“We have adult learners with a variety of skill sets, so we focus on meeting people where they’re at and growing them into equipped healthcare workers,” Susan stated. “Some of the most wonderful moments are seeing people challenge themselves by working hard and passing.” The students are exposed to this can-do attitude every time they enter the classroom with Susan’s frequent reference to a quote from Maya Angelou that says, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel.”
The decades of graduates have been memorialized on the Training Center’s Wall of Fame, dating back to 2014. “I’m proud of what we do,” Susan stated. “We have the best space, the best instructors and the best pass rate. If the goal is to get to certification, then you want to work with us.” T
his confidence comes from years of clinical experience and the understanding of what it takes to prepare great employees.
In addition to training and recertifying CNAs, Susan works closely with the company’s Chief Nursing Officer to identify and update curriculum for areas that could cause potential flags during survey inspections.
As they look forward to the next decade, Susan and the team envision integrating more technology, being responsive to the facilities’ needs and shaping the lives of their students in their own unique way. As the training center team quietly does their job they’re encouraged along the way by conversations and letters from former students including a recent note sent to Pam that stated, “When I came to these classes I never thought that I would make it. But you saw something in me that I didn’t see. You believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself….There were a few days when I didn’t want to come in, and honestly, the only reason I fought it was you. You always managed to make me smile and laugh…”
There are many numbers associated with teaching 240 classes over 120 months, including washing 12,000 loads of training linens and using several hundred thousand pairs of gloves. But no number can be placed on the lives these three remarkable women have changed. We’re fortunate to have them as members of our Living Legends team, and we look forward to welcoming another decade of their graduates.