CNA Clinical Supplies List: What You Actually Need (2026)

For CNA clinicals you need five things: scrubs in your program's colour, closed-toe non-slip shoes, an analog watch with a second hand, a gait belt, and pens with a pocket notebook. Add a stethoscope and a manual blood pressure cuff only if your program's supply list or your state's skills exam calls for them. Everything else can wait until you know your facility.

That list is not a guess. The College of Western Idaho's CNA course, as one published example, requires its program scrubs, closed-toe waterproof shoes, a gait belt with a metal buckle, a blood pressure cuff, an analog watch with a second hand and a stethoscope. The NNAAP skills list published by Credentia, used for the nurse aide skills exam in a number of states, shows why each item is there: you count a radial pulse and respirations for one full minute, you help a resident walk and transfer using a transfer belt, and blood pressure is tested as a state-specific skill, manual with a stethoscope in some states and electronic in others.

Your own program's list is the one that counts. Read it before you spend anything, because some programs build scrubs or a vitals kit into tuition.

The list

1. Speidel Original Scrub Watch — the item every list includes

Counting a pulse or respirations for a full minute needs a second hand you can read at a glance, and programs that specify a watch tend to say analog, as College of Western Idaho's list does. The Speidel is the default nurse watch for that job: a red second hand, 24-hour numerals for military time, a silicone band you can wipe, and a 50 m water rating per Speidel. Around $40.

2. COW&COW Transfer and Gait Belt with Metal Buckle — the belt your program lists

Programs often require your own belt. College of Western Idaho's list asks for a gait belt with a metal buckle, and on the NNAAP skills list the walking and transfer skills start with putting the belt on securely at the waist. This is that plain format: 2 inch cotton webbing, a nickel-chrome plated steel buckle, 60 inches long and machine washable, for under $10. Practise threading the buckle before skills day, and label the belt if you will carry it to work.

3. Casio LRW200H Analog Sport Watch — the cheaper second hand

If money is tight, this Casio does the one job that matters, with a sweep second hand, a 100 m water rating and a resin band that rinses clean. It lacks the Speidel's printed 24-hour numerals. Around $33.

4. Littmann Lightweight II S.E. Stethoscope (2450) — if your program requires one

Not every CNA program asks you to bring a stethoscope, and plenty of CNAs say their facility takes vitals on a machine. But if your program lists one, or your state tests manual blood pressure, you want your own rather than a shared one you have to wipe before every use. Littmann states this is its lightest adult stethoscope at 118 g, with a teardrop chestpiece shaped to slide under a blood pressure cuff, which is exactly the CNA use. Around $55. Our student stethoscope guide compares cheaper options.

5. PARAMED Aneroid Sphygmomanometer Kit — for practising manual blood pressure

Manual blood pressure is the skill most students practise at home, and a cheap aneroidaneroidA mechanical blood-pressure gauge that uses a bellows and needle rather than a mercury column or an electronic sensor. Aneroid units drift out of calibration if dropped and are meant to be checked periodically against a reference; manufacturers state a tolerance, commonly plus or minus 3 mmHg, as a claim about a properly calibrated unit. kit makes that possible. This one has a universal 22 to 42 cm cuff with a D-ring for measuring yourself and a large dial. The stethoscope is not included, whatever some listings imply. Around $24. If your program supplies a cuff, skip it; our blood pressure cuff guide covers better-built options.

6. CHARMKING Compression Socks, 8 Pairs — for the legs

Clinical days are long stretches of standing and walking, often for students who have never worked a long shift. Eight pairs of 15-20 mmHgmmHgMillimeters of mercury, the pressure unit used to rate compression socks and blood-pressure readings. Compression hosiery is sold in bands - commonly 8-15, 15-20, 20-30 and 30-40 mmHg - and the number describes pressure at the ankle, not an average over the whole leg. knee-highs for around $20 is a cheap way to find out whether compression helps you. If you have a circulatory condition, ask your clinician before wearing compression.

The rest of the list

Scrubs. Two or three sets in your program's colour, which programs and facilities specify, so check before you buy. A spare set in your bag or car is the advice working CNAs give most often, for reasons you will understand on your first day. Our women's scrubs and men's scrubs guides cover fit and fabric.

Shoes. Closed-toe, with an outsole that grips a wet floor and ideally an upper that wipes clean. This is the most important purchase on the list and the one worth spending on. Start with best shoes for CNAs, which picks for transfers, shower days and budget; best shoes for nurses covers slip ratings and wipeable uppers in more depth.

A gait belt. Covered above. CNAs also recommend owning one on the job, because facilities do not always provide them. If your facility only allows belts that can be wiped between residents, our gait belt comparison includes a wipe-clean option and a handled belt.

Pens and a pocket notebook. Several black pens, because they disappear, and a notebook small enough for a scrub pocket for vitals and report.

What the skills exam actually checks

Knowing what the evaluator looks for tells you which tools matter. On the NNAAP skills list, your radial pulse count has to land within plus or minus 4 beats of the evaluator's, and your respiration count within plus or minus 2 breaths, each counted for a full minute. That is why a second hand you can read without thinking is worth more than any gadget. The manual blood pressure skill starts with wiping the stethoscope's bellbell vs diaphragmThe two faces of a traditional dual-head chestpiece. The large flat diaphragm favours higher-frequency sounds; the smaller cup-shaped bell, used with light skin contact, favours lower-frequency ones. Which you reach for depends on what you are listening to., diaphragm and earpieces with alcohol, and the transfer and walking skills include putting the belt on securely at the waist before the resident stands. Practise each with the equipment you will use on the day.

Your first-day bag

Working CNAs are consistent about what goes in the bag rather than the pockets: a spare set of scrubs and socks, a water bottle, a lunch and snacks you will actually eat, hand lotion for skin that is washed and sanitised all day, and hair ties if you need them. A small backpack or tote is plenty.

What can wait

A penlight, trauma shears, a badge reelbadge reelA spring-loaded retractable holder that clips an ID badge to clothing and pulls out on a cord for scanning. The three failure points owners report are the cord (frays or snaps), the clip (slips off a scrub waistband) and the spring (stops retracting). Steel-cord and swivel-clip versions address the first two. and a clipboard are useful on many units but rarely required on a CNA course, so buy them in your first job once you know the facility. A big organiser bag is the other common overbuy, because most of what you carry goes in your pockets. A lunch bag and a water bottle are the exceptions. For the fuller nursing kit, see our nurse essentials list.

Before you buy anything

Read your program's supply list and dress code, check whether tuition already covers scrubs or a vitals kit, and find out whether your state tests manual or electronic blood pressure. Then buy the watch and the shoes first, because you will use both every shift.