Lpn's

Nurses General Nursing

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Thanks for the reply to my question about an LPN to RN program without clinicals. In response to the BON'S requiring clinical time, most nurses, LPN or RN, at least in my facility, work side by side and perform the same tasks. RN courses do not even have a quarter of the clinical time as an LPN. Management is the main focus in most RN programs. :D

Well thank you for that reply. I was trying to explain that an LPN does not go to school as long as an Rn, but, the programs here are 15 months and the adn program is 24 months. When we do clinicals, it is 5 days a week with a patient load of about 4. We dont have the luxury of 1 patient. In the facility I work in we do have alot of LPN's, but are expected to take care of our patients to the fullest. This is to include calling our own docs, and basically total care. We carry and average patient load of about 10-13 patients on a normal day. The only thing we dont do is take off orders and put in care plans. This was not meant to be a debate about lpn vs rn, but I get the same reply wherever I bring this subject up. Thanks for your support. :roll

Prettyfoot:

WOW, 10 - 13 pts! If you work in a hospital, that is hideous, if you work LTC, that's really nice. When I worked the hospital I had as many as 7. When I work LTC I may have anywhere from 18 to 34 pts. Currently I PRN at an LTC and contract my services at lther times.

nurse T. thank you for that reply. All I was looking for information, not a debate. I wholeheartedly agree with you. I would like to work with a nice nurse, the letters behind her name dont matter. thanks:roll

Why does there always have to be a debate between RN's and LPN's.

Everyone of us, elected to attend the school that we did, whether it be LPN (ie: 1 Year Program - 18 Month Program or the 2 Yr Program) or the RN (ie: ADN - 3 Yr Hospital Diploma Proram or the BSN Program).

We all know that LPN and RN programs have different criteria and requirements. The main point here is that we function as team members, for the good of the patients. Helping and teaching one and other, no matter what initials we carry.

I have shown and taught many RN's technical skills that they did not have, and in turn they have also shared and taught me skills and theories I did not have.

Being a member of a team is very rewarding, let us all be team members.

I went through a 10 month PN program with clinicals 3 days a week, 8 hours/day. I then went through an accelerated RN program (1 year instead of two, based on testing and LPN status) that had clinicals 2 days a week/ 8 hour days. My 1 year BS program consisted of 1-2 days a week/ 4-8 hour days. I never said as an LPN that I functioned as an equivalent of an RN because I simply lacked the education and acute care experience (LPNs in my time and state were phased out of hospitals). I didn't really know what I did not know until I continued my education and continued my working experiences . Education and experience are building blocks that should be appreciated and not simply endured as a means to an end. The reason that this divisive argument continues to endure is that different programs continue to exist because there is a need for nurses. Unfortunately, hospitals and other facilities use that to divide nurses as noted by comments made on the board ie: "My hosp. likes ADN nurses, my hosp. is going to BSN prepared nurses, my hosp. is hiring LPNs because they are cheaper, etc etc." We need to remove ourselves from the argument as other posters have stated, stand firm as a nursing profession and focus on the crucial issues affecting us, and refuse to allow others or ourselves to utilize a "divide and conquer" strategy.

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