HCA to CNA Bridge Near Issaquah, WA: 40-Hour Weekday and Weekend Options

The shortest route from Home Care Aide to Nursing Assistant-Certified (NA-C) for an Issaquah caregiver is a 40-clock-hour bridge: $800 tuition plus about $105 in books and supplies at Huduma CNA Programs in Federal Way, delivered as 5 consecutive weekdays or about 2.5 weekends, followed by the same $155 two-part state exam that 108-hour graduates take. The only entry requirements are an active Washington HCA credential and a high school diploma or GED. Bellevue College, the nearest college nursing assistant program to Issaquah, lists a one-quarter certificate with no separate HCA bridge on its program page, so Issaquah HCAs who want the short version drive about 29 to 32 miles to Federal Way, five times in total.

Weekday cohort or weekend cohort

Both patterns finish with the $100 skills test administered at the school. Cohort dates are listed on the schedules page.

Who is eligible from Issaquah's caregiver workforce

Issaquah's HCAs work mostly in three places: private in-home clients across Issaquah, Sammamish, and Klahanie; assisted living and memory care in the Highlands and along Gilman Boulevard; and the Providence Point continuing-care campus. Any of them can bridge if they meet these conditions:

• Active HCA credential on the DOH Provider Credential Search. A credential in "pending" or "expired" status disqualifies you until fixed. HCAs renew each year on the holder's birthday.
• Diploma or GED. Documents from outside the United States need an equivalency evaluation before enrollment.
• Background clearance before the 6-hour clinical. The DOH check is name-based and statewide; a caregiver who moved to Issaquah from out of state recently may be asked for fingerprints, so file consent on enrollment day.
• Instruction in English. Theory, lab, mock testing, and the state skills test are all in English.

Two groups are not eligible: caregivers who completed the 75-hour DSHS training but never passed the HCA exam, and long-term care workers who were exempt from HCA certification. Both enroll in the 108-hour CNA Traditional program at $1,100.

The 36 instructional hours, and what they cover

The bridge does not re-teach bathing, dressing, or transfers that Issaquah HCAs perform daily. It targets the difference between a home care plan and a nursing facility assignment:

1. Charting and reporting on nursing home flow sheets and to a charge nurse, including which observations must be escalated immediately.
2. Vital signs to examiner tolerance. Manual blood pressure, radial pulse, respirations, and temperature, each recorded within the range the state skills evaluator accepts.
3. Checklist-scored mobility skills. Gait-belt transfers, positioning, ambulation, and passive range of motion, each with critical steps that fail the skill if omitted.
4. Catheter, perineal, and elimination care at the facility standard.
5. Indirect-care steps scored on every skill. Hand hygiene, privacy, explaining the procedure, call light placement, and safety checks.

The final 4 hours are mock testing under exam conditions. The 25-skill list the examiner draws from is reviewed in the Washington CNA skills test skills list.

Issaquah to Federal Way five times

Times are approximate and based on Sound Transit published route pages and the state route description of SR 18 as of September 2026.

• SR 18 by car. Issaquah-Hobart Road south to SR 18, then southwest past Maple Valley, Covington, and Auburn to the I-5 terminus in Federal Way. About 29 miles and 45 minutes, slowest through the two-lane section near Tiger Mountain.
• I-90, I-405, and I-5 by car. About 32 miles; 45 minutes off-peak but longer whenever I-405 through Renton backs up. Parking is in the Federal Way Downtown station garage of about 1,500 stalls, next to the school.
• Transit. Route 556 from Issaquah Transit Center or Issaquah Highlands Park and Ride to Bellevue, every 15 minutes at peak; the 2 Line from Bellevue across I-90 into Seattle; then the 1 Line south from International District/Chinatown to Federal Way Downtown. Plan about two hours each way. Five such trips is manageable; the weekend cohort should check reduced weekend frequencies first.

Bridge versus traditional, in dollars and hours

The DOH application fee follows the current fee schedule for both. A full list of every charge from enrollment to registry is in CNA certification cost in Washington.

What the NA-C opens in Issaquah

After certification you hold both credentials, and the NA-C adds employers that do not hire HCAs: Swedish Issaquah at 751 NE Blakely Drive per the Swedish locations page, and the city's skilled nursing facilities, Providence Marianwood, Issaquah Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, and Avamere Rehabilitation of Issaquah. Indeed's August 2026 data reports about $23.73 per hour in Kirkland and $23.80 in Seattle, the closest reported cities, against a Washington average of about $23.62, all approximate; nursing facility differentials of roughly $1.50 to $4 per hour for evenings, nights, and weekends sit on top. Which Issaquah employer hires at which stage is covered in CNA jobs in Issaquah, WA.

Seven steps from Issaquah to the registry

1. Confirm the HCA credential reads "active" and collect the diploma or GED.
2. Enroll for a weekday or weekend cohort; sign background-check consent the same day.
3. Attend all 36 instructional hours, including the 6-hour clinical in a licensed nursing facility.
4. Complete mock testing, then take the $100 skills test on site. WAC 246-841A-430 requires programs to allow at least four attempts.
5. Register with Credentia for the $55 knowledge test only after the skills pass is recorded; online or oral.
6. Submit the DOH application under route E6 with the fee per the current schedule.
7. Check the Provider Credential Search for the NA-C, then notify your Issaquah employer so the role and pay change.

The E6 route and the documents the DOH expects with it are described in understanding the HCA to CNA bridge route.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an HCA to CNA bridge on the Eastside near Issaquah? Bellevue College's program page lists a one-quarter nursing assistant certificate and no separate HCA bridge. The closest 40-hour bridge offering both weekday and weekend cohorts is the Federal Way program.

How many days will I be away from my Issaquah clients? Five weekdays on the weekday cohort, or none on the weekend cohort, which takes about 2.5 weekends.

My HCA credential is active but expires during the cohort. Is that a problem? Renew before enrolling. The credential must remain active from enrollment through the exam and the E6 application.

Why is the bridge 40 hours when the DOH describes 24? The DOH figure is a minimum. Huduma adds lab and mock-testing hours because bridge candidates sit the identical skills and knowledge tests as 108-hour graduates.

Do I take the knowledge test in Federal Way? No. Part 2 is an online or oral test through Credentia, scheduled after the skills pass is recorded. Only the skills test happens at the school.

Will I still be an HCA afterward? Yes. Both credentials stay on the DOH registry and each renews annually on your birthday.

Enrollment documents are on the HCA to CNA bridge program page. To weigh the bridge against the full course, read CNA classes near Issaquah, WA.