"You'll be a nurse two years after you get your RN"

[nurseby07]

So my husband is an LPN, working for his RN. He works at a big hospital here in our area. He has been a little upset because they have "nurses meetings" and don't include him. Ok, we've talked about it. It just fuels his fire to become an RN even more. But he get the short end of the stick all the time. He is constantly told "No, that's for the nurses" and he says, "I am a nurse". This has been going on a long time.

Today when he asked about the meetings he was told by the charge nurse, "You'll be a nurse only after you've been an RN for 2 years" Ouuuch. Hubby is upset. I am perturbed at a nurse saying that to another nurse, my spouse or not.

Just a vent while dinner cooks...

[jpRN84, BSN, RN]

tell your hubby that he is a nurse too Licensed Practical NURSE. HE IS A NURSE. No matter what anyone says. and you are an RN when you become a licensed Registered Nurse, not 2 years down the road. Tell your hubby not to let that get to thim. I used to work at a state hospital where they looked down on LPNs and when they had meetings they would have "Nurses meetings" for RNs, and meetings for LPNs/Psych Aides. Other RNs that worked there looked down on them and treated them like they were not nurses, I would always include LPNs in decision making when I worked there and other RNs there didn't like that. Needless to say I didn't work there long because of that and a few other things. But yeah, you're hubby is a nurse no matter what.

[Scrubby]

If someone told me that I wouldn't be an RN until after two years, I'd be telling them that's fine, I guess that means I won't be given the same responsibilities as a registered nurse then.

[UM Review RN, ASN, RN]

Definitely dissed. How sad that so-called professionals can behave like that toward a colleague.

But I have a solution:

Come to FL! LPN's have duties that pretty much equal an RN's--they just get paid about $5 less per hour.

[sofaraway04]

My first thought on the comment that you won't be a nurse until after 2 years was that it meant it will generally take 2 years to be confident and really know what you are doing. I know that once you start working that's when the learning really starts, the first year is really hard and a massive learning curve.

I've not long reached my 2nd year and it has taken me this long to feel confident and competent in some situations. I need a lot less support form colleagues than I did when I first started out.

I also don't see why he should be excluded from the meetings, although if they are anything like our ward meetings I'm glad to avoid if at all possible.

[nurseby07]

Thank you for all of the comments! He hears most of that from me, but it was good for him to read them from other nurses.

[nminodob]

I learned far more from the nurses I work with who were CNAs and LPNs (LVNs) than I ever have from straight out of school RNs. And sometimes it seems like nursing school encourages the pecking order syndrome by defining the RN role as the only one capable of assessment - all other nursing staff is merely support. But boy do some nurses need support!

As a former CNA I remember being offended by one of our midterm questions that asked how we as nurses should respond to a nurse assistant who made a comment, "Man, that chick in isolation is whiny!" Of course, the answer we were supposed to choose was the one where the holier-than-thou RN lectures the uncouth nurse assistant on how they should think and talk - as if nurse assistants are so dumb and clueless that it takes a person with a degree to school them on the proper etiquette for discussing patients!

[nurseby07]

I learned far more from the nurses I work with who were CNAs and LPNs (LVNs) than I ever have from straight out of school RNs. And sometimes it seems like nursing school encourages the pecking order syndrome by defining the RN role as the only one capable of assessment - all other nursing staff is merely support. But boy do some nurses need support!

As a former CNA I remember being offended by one of our midterm questions that asked how we as nurses should respond to a nurse assistant who made a comment, "Man, that chick in isolation is whiny!" Of course, the answer we were supposed to choose was the one where the holier-than-thou RN lectures the uncouth nurse assistant on how they should think and talk - as if nurse assistants are so dumb and clueless that it takes a person with a degree to school them on the proper etiquette for discussing patients!

I was a CNA before I was an RN too, and I too HATED those questions in school. As if the average CNA was an idiot..

[AlabamaBelle]

i am currently precepting an lpn who is in her final semester of nursing school. she has 12 years experience and is totally awesome!!!

her previous experience has been children's heme/onc and that experience has been an opportunity for me to learn from her. for example, in our picu, we don't use pca pumps often, but she is more than competent. she was able to articulate clearly and with extreme accuracy everything that had occurred with that patient over the last 24hrs during our md rounds. our attending was so impressed. thankfully for us, she has a plan and we should be getting her in a couple of year (i'd prefer now).

we have staff meetings - everyone is included who calls our unit home - secretaries, cnas, rns (we don't have any lpns on our unit). suggest hubby's unit do the same. the staff meetings and our unit based council really does help to foster a great sense of comraderie.

he is a nurse and i'd be honored to work with him.

[Keepstanding, ASN, RN]

tell your hubby that they are pompas a$$'s. his is a full fledged nurse and his license proves it. give him a big hug from all of us here a an !!

praiser :heartbeat