can lpn be adon

pagandeva2000, LPN · Jan 31, 2007

I shall add that I would never want to be working as an ADON with only an LVN license because the pay is so limited. At my facility, our three ADONs receive a salary of $45,000 per year, which is not a great deal of money when one takes into consideration the enormous amount of work they are responsible for doing.
They often work 60 hours weekly, but never receive a dime of overtime or bonus pay since they receive a fixed salary. They are on-call in case one of their nurses does not show up for work. In addition, they frequently take the fall if one of their nurses messes up. They must also be in good standing with the management clique at work, or else they'll be demoted. All three of the ADONs at my facility are LVNs with no additional education or college degrees. They simply know the facility's protocol and were promoted after 2 years of being floor nurses.

Based on what I am reading, I would have say that I wouldn't want to do it, either. If I wanted to deal with all of that, I would have become an RN. What I would like to know is if there are RNs working at these facilities, and if so, what is their role, if an LVN is a ADON or DON?

pagandeva2000, LPN · Jan 31, 2007

well i only make about $28000 a year and am payed by the hour and i already fill in when my nurses call in. i already do alot of management stuff and know the policy and procedures. i answer to the don and administer and they back me up on anything i do and are good about helpng me out. we are a very small facility. 34 ltc beds and 12 hospital beds.

Thanks for sharing. One thing for certain; you can certainly take the experience elsewhere, and if you needed another job, you'd know what to say in order to achieve a new position.

From a personal perspective, I wouldn't do it (not criticizing you, or anyone who is or is considering it). I don't have the talent or patience to manage people and deal with Joint Commission and the other regulatory agencies that haunt facilities.

CHATSDALE · Jan 31, 2007

LPN-ADON

an lpn who functions as adon usually does a lot of paper work..she usually tries to fill a call in, if she is esp busy she will reassign duties to cover load

[i use she as the one at the last ltc was female, no sexist bias intended]

the lpn cannot cover anything that should be done per rn...ie in a ltc can be covered by an rn for 8 hors and meet minimum state require, this is frequently the don lpnadon cannot substitute for this

chart adiuts, employee eval, can be done..this removes a lot of paper work from don but many ltc prefer a rn for this position

the benefit that a ltc in having an lp in this position would be the cost saving of a salary

the lpn might benefit from experience

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jan 31, 2007

Based on what I am reading, I would have say that I wouldn't want to do it, either. If I wanted to deal with all of that, I would have become an RN. What I would like to know is if there are RNs working at these facilities, and if so, what is their role, if an LVN is a ADON or DON?

There are RNs working at my nursing home and at other long term care facilities in my area. Some of my RN coworkers are simply floor nurses who do the same tasks as me, but earn $5 more hourly. The DON of my facility is an RN who earns $80,000 yearly. In my opinion, she is well compensated for all that she must deal with. In my opinion, the LVN-ADONs are not well compensated for all that they must deal with at the salary of $45,000 per year.

nurseangel31_03 · Feb 1, 2007

well i have been working as the lct care floor supervisor for a little over a year and the requirements will not differ a whole lot. i have a good standing with all my lct staff and the administer and don. i would just have a few more duties to make it a little harder and will have to take call if any problems arise, which would not be different from now because they all call me with problems any way. the only differences i can really see is maybe they would increase my pay.

txspadequeenRN, BSN, RN · Feb 1, 2007

Ive been the supervisor and let me tell you ...take it ..take it all. I would rather be the low man on the totem, pole. When I was the supervisor I never knew when I was going home , what area I was working in and the damn phone...The staffing phone rang off the hook.....Now that I am a agency nurse, I take only the shifts I want and after I give report I go home... It is great..

jamangel · Feb 1, 2007

pagendeva2000, I'm sorry I wasn't able to respond earlier. I've been studying for midterms. Well, my duties included staffing, there was indeed plenty of paperwork, I worked closely with the DON and had to attend more than enough meetings with the admin. i didn't have any specialized schooling. I knew policy and procedures and DHEC expectations. I was offered the job and did not ask for it. I used that to my advantage to get a contract that stated that I did not have to do relief staffing. That was big for me because I worked out of state. It was only a 25 minute drive but teh facility I worked was in a small town and I didn't want to do it. I was responsible for inservices and evenemployee health. I had only been a LPN about 2 years and I made 42,000 salaried. This was very good money because cost of living is low here (and I also worked a weekend opt job which increased my salary even more. After that I moved into care planning

Supervisory positions aren't for everyone so that's why not everyone can or will be supervisors. At this time in my life (10 years later), I'd rather not do that anymore. Also, roles are not as condensed in some most areas of nursing esp hospitals. When I left LTC, I was able to do case management only, and then scheduling coordinator only (i do scheduling now but in addition to my floor nursing), and on many committees. So now I get to do things I love without the burden of things I'd rather not do. I prefer non-traditional roles and so I have done jobs I was so-so about as a stairstep to what I want to do.

nurseangel31_03 · Feb 2, 2007

i have not asked for this, but this is something they are thinking about if it is legal and i am just trying to find out what i can before i make any decisions on what they may offer. my duty's at this time would not change much. i handle most all staffing and employee issues and alot of the things you say are management i have been doing for a long time as ltc floor supervisor.

foxxcat · Feb 4, 2007

Here in Ohio you can , I have been for the past 10 years

nurseangel31_03 · May 12, 2007

well at this time i am thinking of doing a lpn to rn course on line and being the don my self since we can not find one and what we have is a fill in with me doing most of the work, thank you all for your knowledge

1962maggie · May 13, 2007

I live in Pa. and the new trend in this small rural area, is that the DON in 2 different LTC facilities are not, nor ever have been nurses of any kind. I'm very reluctant to work for these places. The DON have business degrees.

Hospice Nurse LPN, BSN, RN · May 13, 2007

I think the law varies by state. In Louisiana it depends on the size of the facility. I'm not sure of the #, but it cannot be a large facility. Assisted living is another story. There the DON can be a LPN.