HCA News

A Summary from 2024-2025

In 2025, the Government of Alberta announced that Health Care Aide (HCA) regulation would come into force on February 2, 2026. At that time, the College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta (CLPNA) became one college regulating two professions and rebranded to the College of LPNs and HCAs of Alberta (CLHA).

Preparing for Regulation

The CLPNA concentrated on preparing for HCA regulation in 2025, focusing on communication with HCAs, employers, and other interested parties and preparing processes, documents, and the database for an additional 40,000 registrants.

• The CLPNA developed standards of practice, a code of ethics, and numerous policies and guidance to support safe, ethical, and competent HCA practice.
• The CLPNA prepared to transfer over 40,000 HCAs from the Directory, developing processes for the transition from Directory Core Competency Statuses to the CLHA registers.
• The CLPNA executed a communications plan to keep HCAs, employers, and other interested parties updated about the transition to regulation and requirements for HCA practice and registration.

Maintaining the Provincial HCA Exam

The HCA Directory administered the Government of Alberta Provincial HCA Examination, which assessed HCA students’ success in meeting entry-to-practice requirements. In 2025, preparations began to create a registration exam for initial CLHA applicants going forward, with question writing that incorporated professional and regulatory standards. The Candidate Handbook was also revised.

Revising the HCA Provincial Curriculum

In 2024, on behalf of the Government of Alberta, the CLPNA undertook a revision of the provincial HCA curriculum. In 2025, with the announcement of HCA regulation coming into force, the project pivoted to incorporate information on professional and regulatory standards.

The project maintains active engagement with interested parties including HCAs, who share frontline perspectives on the content.