Signing up with a CNA temp agency is the easy part. Getting steady, useful coverage out of one takes a little setup on your side: clear requests, a decent first-shift routine, and a habit of telling the agency what worked and what didn't. Facilities that do those things tend to get the same familiar nursing assistants back week after week. Facilities that skip them tend to get a revolving door.
This guide is the practical side of working with an agency. If you're still deciding whether to use one, or how to judge one, start with our overview of what to expect from a CNA staffing agency. Here we'll assume you've picked one and want it to run smoothly.
When a CNA Temp Agency Makes Sense
Agency nursing assistants fit best where the need is real but temporary, or where you need time to fix the underlying gap:
- Call-ins and open shifts. The evening someone calls in sick, or the weekend nobody picked up.
- Vacation and leave coverage. Planned absences, from a week of PTO to a medical or parental leave.
- Census swings. A bump in admissions or higher-acuity residents that your core schedule wasn't built for.
- Opening a new unit or wing. Coverage while you hire and train a permanent team.
- While you recruit. Holding open lines steady so your own staff aren't absorbing them as overtime.
It makes less sense as a permanent substitute for a core team. If the same lines have been filled by an agency CNA for months with no plan to hire, that's usually a recruiting or retention problem the agency can cover for but not solve. The CNA and LPN shortage in the Twin Cities explains why those gaps tend to persist.
Before Your First Request: Set Up the Account
Most first-shift problems trace back to information the agency never had. Before you book anything, send the agency:
- Unit details. Each unit's name, type of care (long-term care, memory care, transitional care, assisted living) and typical resident needs.
- Shift times. Exact start and end times, including any overlap for report.
- An orientation packet. A short document covering emergency procedures, resident care basics, charting expectations and who to go to with questions.
- Access logistics. Where to park, which door to use, how badges and keys are handled, and how agency staff get into your EHR or charting system.
- Who confirms shifts. Name one or two people who can approve requests and confirm bookings, so the agency isn't chasing three different managers.
Our guide to preparing your facility for agency staff goes through each of these in more detail.
Placing a Request With a CNA Temp Agency
A good request answers the questions a nursing assistant will have walking in the door. Include:
- Unit and shift, with exact times.
- Acuity and assignment size, roughly what the CNA should expect.
- Special skills the shift needs: Hoyer or sit-to-stand lifts, dementia care experience, bariatric equipment, feeding assistance.
- Dress code, such as scrub color or shoe requirements.
- Float expectations. Will they stay on one unit, or could they be moved mid-shift?
- Your on-site contact for that shift.
Lead time matters. The further ahead you ask, the more choice the agency has about who to send, and the more likely you'll get someone who has worked in your building before. Same-day requests do get filled, but the pool is smaller, so it helps to have a standing relationship and a complete account setup already in place. For the day-of side of this, see our guide to filling last-minute shifts.
Per Diem, Block Booking or Short-Term Contract
Most facilities use a mix of three arrangements:
- Per diem CNA coverage. Single shifts booked as needed. Flexible, but you may see more different faces.
- Block booking. A run of shifts booked together, such as every Tuesday and Thursday evening for six weeks. This tends to improve continuity because the same CNA can be scheduled for the whole block.
- Short-term contract. A nursing assistant assigned to your facility for a defined stretch, often to cover a leave or bridge a hiring gap.
If you're weighing these, our breakdown of per diem vs. contract staffing walks through the trade-offs, and our post on what agency staffing costs covers how billing typically works.
The First Shift
An agency CNA's first shift in your building sets the tone. A few simple habits go a long way:
- Assign a buddy. Pair them with one of your own nursing assistants for the start of the shift, ideally someone who'll be on the same hall.
- Hand over a clear assignment sheet. Room numbers, residents, transfer status, diet and any behaviors to watch for.
- Include them in report. They should hear the same handoff your own staff hear.
- Tell them who to call. The charge nurse's name, how to reach them, and who to go to if something goes wrong.
Getting Consistency From Agency CNAs
The biggest difference between a frustrating agency relationship and a useful one is how often the same people come back.
Request repeat CNAs by name. When a nursing assistant does well, tell the agency you want them again. Most agencies will try to send familiar staff when they're available, but they can only do that if you ask.
Keep a feedback loop. A quick note after a shift, positive or negative, helps the agency match the right people to your building. Specific beats general: "great with our memory care residents" tells the agency more than "she was fine."
Use the do-not-return (DNR) process fairly. Every agency has a way to flag a CNA you don't want back. Use it when there's a real problem, and give the agency the reason so it can address it. A DNR without context doesn't help anyone improve the match next time.
Tracking Whether It's Working
You don't need a complicated dashboard, but a few numbers tracked month over month will tell you whether agency use is helping or quietly growing:
- Agency hours as a share of total CNA hours. Is it trending down as you hire, or creeping up?
- Repeat-CNA rate. What portion of agency shifts go to nursing assistants who have worked in your building before?
- Overtime hours for your own staff. One of the main reasons to use an agency is to stop leaning on mandatory overtime. If overtime isn't moving, ask why.
- Unfilled shifts. How many requests the agency couldn't fill, and how far in advance they were placed.
Review these with the agency every so often.
Minnesota Compliance Pieces Your Facility Still Owns
An agency handles a lot of the credentialing work, but some responsibilities stay with you.
Nurse Aide Registry status. Agency nursing assistants must be on the Nurse Aide Registry before they can work in a nursing home or certified boarding care home, with no grace period. The practical step is to make the Registry lookup part of your first-shift checklist for every new agency CNA, next to badge and orientation. Our CNA staffing agency guide explains how the Registry search works.
Assisted living records for contractors. If you operate a licensed assisted living facility, Minn. Stat. 144G.42, subdivision 8, requires staff records for each individual contractor providing services, not only your employees. Those records include proof of any required certification, records of orientation, required training and competency evaluations, and background study documentation. The statute requires keeping them for at least three years after the contractor stops providing services. Ask your agency what documentation it will supply and decide who keeps what.
Frequently Asked Questions
How fast can a CNA temp agency fill a shift?
It depends on the shift, the day of the week, the skills needed and how many available nursing assistants the agency has nearby. Requests placed further in advance give the agency more options. Same-day requests can be filled, but there's less choice about who goes, so having your account and orientation materials set up ahead of time makes a real difference.
Can we hire an agency CNA permanently?
Often, yes, but it depends on your agency contract. Many agreements include a conversion or temp-to-hire clause that spells out when and how you can hire an agency CNA directly, and whether a fee applies. Read that section before you make an offer.
Who supervises agency CNAs during a shift?
Your facility does. Agency nursing assistants work under the direction of your nurses and follow your policies and care plans, the same as your own CNAs. The agency typically remains the employer for things like pay and credentialing, but day-to-day clinical direction comes from your charge nurse.
What should we do when an agency CNA isn't a good fit?
Tell the agency soon after the shift, with specifics: what happened, and on which unit. Ask them not to send that person back to your building. Most agencies keep a do-not-return list for each client, and clear feedback also helps them choose better matches the next time you request coverage.
Working With Interim HealthCare Staffing
Interim HealthCare Staffing of Minneapolis places CNAs, LPNs and RNs with facilities across the Twin Cities and southern Minnesota on a per diem, short-term and contract basis, and handles credentialing for the staff we send. If you'd like to set up an account or have open shifts now, you can request staff online or contact us to talk through what your building needs.