Lpn programs...whats the point!!

[smak60]

:crying2:So what is the point of having LPN programs???? Its like being stuck inbetween a RN and a NA..??? If you dont have experience ..no one will hire you....I have been looking for a job..and I have had NO LUCK!!..But if I was a RN....those jobs are everywhere.......I graduated in Dec....and passed Nclex in Feb......I have applied at Dr offices....lots of them....applied on line ....for a lpn position at a hospital...got turned down........office positions are few and far between...I understand that....and I have appllied at an assisted living facility...did drug test..etc...last week....but nothing so far....and NO I have not applied at any LTC....!!! I had clinicals...at those places....and I DO NOT AGREE with the way they are run!!!!!!!!!!!!!.....SO...I guess that leaves me with the decision to look into another type of career. And I had not even got started in this one......I went to a job fair....and the lady told me to go back to school????????? WELL I CANT!!.....BUT IF I KNEW THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW.....I WOULD NOT HAVE WENT BACK TO SCHOOL TO BECOME AN LPN!!!!! I ADMIRER ALL OF YOU THAT HAVE BECOME RNS...MY MOM IS ONE.....BUT I FEEL BELITTLED BY THIS WHOLE THING....I have worked hard all my life.....I worked at a company for 11 1/1 years...it closed down........it had nothing to do with the medical field...anyway.....I went to school....but I feel like I really should have done it differently now.

I cant help to feel like the LPN program is just a joke..............and again...I do admirer all RNs....it took you alot to get where you are.......but I have no desire to become one.......but I do love helping people...etc........but I cant find a job....so whats the point...no one will hire you without experience....so when they look at my resume...I am sure they just laugh........

[spnanita]

It also depends on where you are at...Probably the best thing to do is to get a job at a LTC that has a Rehab center in it. You will get quite a bit of "hospital" like experience just in the Rehab. Swallow your pride and go to the LTC, once you have some experience under your belt, then you can pursue hospital jobs.

[Faeriewand, ASN, RN]

Please do let us know if this is true-I suspect you may be disappointed.We have a few brand new RN's that are unbelievable. Catty,rude,un-professional and ill mannered twits.One chica has some critical care experince.What that entails,I just don't know because she fell apart when she discovered a resident with an apparent new onset seizure and had to call 911 recently (couldn't find that "11" on the phone,ya know?" I think you'll find a mix of both in most programs,don't you?

Thanks for the reply. Your probably right. LOL I was in a peevish mood that day when I wrote that my program was worse than high school and was hoping college/RN would be better. I do sincerely hope that we are treated better as college students but I have been there too and have witnessed atrocious behavior on the part of the teachers (I will not deign to call them professors due to their unprofessional conduct)

Even at our LVN graduation students behaved like in h.s. dancing across the stage etc. Some remarks were made by a nurse in the audience about how unprofessional all the silly behavior was. Said that his graduation from nursing school was much more serious.

[newbie26]

In my area in Tx LVN's are valued, especially in doctor's offices and hospitals. I have a job waiting for me at a Cardiovascular office and a hospital and I'm only in my second semester. It's really a shame that some states still haven't realized that we can do what a RN can do just as good. Yes they have more of the reasons behind it but we get waaay more clinical time. I would also suggest home health care too. The ones in my area hire people without experience. Thats how I got my experience as a CNA. Good luck to you and don't give up.

[MAmom81]

I think that it's criminal the way these LPN programs keep misleading their students into believing that they will be scoring a hospital job. In my program working LTC was rarely discussed as an option. Instead the focus was on working in a hospital...it was a joke to me because I knew better. I would listen to the instructors asking students what they wanted to specialize in and I would just shake my head.

The hard cold truth about being an LPN in a lot of places, not all but a lot, is that we are not being hired in large numbers at hospitals....period. That's just the way it is and I would encourage anyone who is thinking about becoming an LPN to do a little research into what the job prospects are going to be before they decide what type of nursing education they wish to pursue.

I don't think that it's impossible to find what you are looking for but you gotta be realistic about the fact that you are a new grad and you are likely competing with experienced LPNs for a very limited amount of hospital and doc office positions.

Now if you think that the investment you made in your education thus far has been a waste then it is whatever you perceive it as. Personally, I have always looked at becoming an LPN as a stepping stone on my way to RN and beyond that. I know I have to work in LTC for the time being but I am looking at it as a learning experience. There are a lot skills that can be acquired in LTC and guess what? Those LTC residents are just as important as the hospital patients and they really need good nurses. So although I know that I will likely not be working LTC for my entire career while I am here I am proud of providing the best care that I am capable of for my resident's.

I wish you the best of luck.

I totally agree with you. Schools should not mislead LVN/LPN students about working in a hospital. My friend has told me that the LTC is bascially my only & best option once I finish Nursing School ( I should start this Fall 2008!!! I cannot wait!!!!) Yes there are great nurses that work in LTC Facilities & the residents there are important as hospital residents & deserve the best care I will give. Once I finish nursing school & pass the NCLEX-PN I will work as an LVN for about 2 years & then go back to my CC for their RN Porgram because they have told me I Three different options to choose from for the RN Program because my ultimate dream is to work in L&D or med-surgical!!!! I commend on your compassion for the care you will provide for the residents in LTC Facilities. I wish you the best!!!!:nurse::wshgrt: