I wish RN schools would quit teaching the RN students LPN's can't do anything!

Published

I am getting so frustrated with some RN students in these NCLEX review groups. They keep saying that LPN's can't do any assessments, they can't do any patient teaching, or evaluations, that it is illegal. I think it is important that RN understand the real scope of practice of the LPN. To hear them talk LPN's are no different than medication aids. It makes me sad that they are taught to think so little of our education and training.

Specializes in Geriatrics, Dialysis.

Scope of LPN practice can vary wildly between states. If you want to know what an LPN can and can't do in your state, check out their scope of practice on your BON website.

Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.

Also remember...just because you do something in your facility doesn't mean it is within you scope according to the BON. You need to know what the BON says because if your facility isn't following the BON...it is you who will get burned.

Specializes in LTC.

Those of us who do LPN before RN certainly have a different perspective, don't we. I am about to start my RN program and I suspect I will be RME at some of the stuff that is taught about LPNs. I have a co-worker who is a BSN RN who struggles with respecting LPNs clinical knowledge even though she is the newbie and most of the LPNs have a boatload of experience. She is struggling but she has alienated the people who can help her the most. I understand scope of practice is different but LPNs and RNs can still learn a lot from each other.

I'm sure the scope of practice is different between LPN and RN. FACT is LPNs like me won't ever get respect from RNs but it's funny because RNs get the same treatment from Doctors so it's just the way the medical field is and always will be. Hope you RNs enjoyed getting crap treatment from cocky Doctors. Lol.

Specializes in LTC.
I'm sure the scope of practice is different between LPN and RN. FACT is LPNs like me won't ever get respect from RNs but it's funny because RNs get the same treatment from Doctors so it's just the way the medical field is and always will be. Hope you RNs enjoyed getting crap treatment from cocky Doctors. Lol.

I think you need to check your fact because it is not universally true that LPNs aren't respected by RNs. I get plenty of respect from my RN co-workers except the one I mentioned above. In my facility, all nurses, LPNs or RN, interact with physicians and most of them are cordial.

Specializes in Certified Med/Surg tele, and other stuff.
I'm sure the scope of practice is different between LPN and RN. FACT is LPNs like me won't ever get respect from RNs but it's funny because RNs get the same treatment from Doctors so it's just the way the medical field is and always will be. Hope you RNs enjoyed getting crap treatment from cocky Doctors. Lol.

Wowsa, a bit angry? You won't get respect with that attitude.

For the record, I have received respect and had excellent working relationships with MD's over the years, and only had problems with a handful. What pecking order you perceive doesn't exist everywhere for everyone. I can speak from experience because I was a CNA, LPN, ADN and now BSN nurse.

Specializes in geriatrics,psych.

I will never understand why we (LPN's) have such a negative connotation attached to our letters. We are "getting phased out" Don't do enough..or we are lovingly referred to as "lets pretend nurses." WELL we are nurses. We went to school too. I also believe that our roles are not expressed. I am going for my RN. I love being an LPN I just want to further my education. I am interested in Hospice. And in school recently, my intro to health class never mentioned us except for the fact that we are beneath RN's. It's just sad to me. We should embrace the different roles we each have. We all have skills and can help each other.

Specializes in Certified Med/Surg tele, and other stuff.
I will never understand why we (LPN's) have such a negative connotation attached to our letters. We are "getting phased out" Don't do enough..or we are lovingly referred to as "lets pretend nurses." WELL we are nurses. We went to school too. I also believe that our roles are not expressed. I am going for my RN. I love being an LPN I just want to further my education. I am interested in Hospice. And in school recently, my intro to health class never mentioned us except for the fact that we are beneath RN's. It's just sad to me. We should embrace the different roles we each have. We all have skills and can help each other.

They were phasing out LPN's back in the eighties, which is why I continued on with my RN. The LPN, a I said before, has never been given enough credit for their skills.

Just out of curiosity… what state is that? And do you have a cite for that information?

It amazes me the replies that have originated from the original post. Talk about going off on a tangent. The original post was by an LPN who is sick and tired of RNs belittling their profession and experience and just wants some professional respect in the workplace. I'm assuming there is a condescending tone to this question so my answer is going to be very blunt as I don't believe it even deserves a reply since it seems to be coming from yet another RN who doesn't have respect for his/her co-workers (yes, that's what we are, your CO-WORKERS). You want to know what state I am from? I see you have a computer. There are 50 states in the United States. Look up the nurse practice act for the scope of an LPN in each one and then you can narrow down your choices. As for a "cite" for my information, this is an online discussion forum not a research paper. Would you like that "cite" in APA format? I stated that it is only a handful of the things that I am allowed to do in my state and have done for close to 15 years. I didn't work for backwoodsy facilities. The hospital at the time was the largest hospital organization in the United States and very well may still be. The long term care facility IS the largest senior living organization in this country. I worked for the hospital from 2002-2009 and the long-term care facility I quit about six months ago because I decided to go back to school to finish the degree that I had almost completed 12 years ago but didn't because I couldn't afford the loss of income (from having less availability at work) to continue the program at that time. The job market is changing for LPNs, not because the BON changed our scope but because facilities are being more selective with what level of education that they will hire, mainly due to MAGNET status requirements. If you want proof of what my job requirements were, find the job descriptions while you are looking up the LPN scopes. I don't owe you anything. The original post was not meant to have a bunch of bullies tell the writer why they don't deserve mutual respect in the workplace. It was an LPN tired of being belittled by her co-workers. Like you, we have gone to school, maybe not as long, but we are far more educated than a medication aide (which can be as little as an 8 hour class in a facility about how to pass meds in an ALF) and have most of the same skill base. It varies from state to state, this is how things are in mine. Maybe things would be different if everyone was required to work their way up the professional latter...start as a CNA, work as one while going to school to become an LPN, then work as an LPN while going to school to complete the RN...maybe then we could all respect each other and what we contribute to the workforce. Until then, there will always be someone who didn't put in the time at the lower level to truly understand how much that person really does each day.

It was illuminating for me to complete an RN bridge program after working for a few years as an LPN. I really came to understand the distinctions between what an LPN can and cannot do.

LPNs cannot do assessments. They can gather data for an assessment, but an RN always ends up signing off and taking responsibility. LPNs cannot do primary education. They can reinforce education delivered by an RN. In other words, the first person to teach a new colostomy patient how to change their appliance should not be an LPN.

In practice this is not always followed. Care planning is supposed to be done by an RN, but at my facility the LPN often add items to the care plan. There is a distinction though. Final approval of the care plan lies with people higher on the food chain, and not with the LPNs who work the floor.

The RNs are right. LPNs will seem to have more autonomy in an LTC setting, but in fact it is always an RN who signs off on everything.

This is not the case in ll facilities and states. When I worked as a LPN in rehab we did the initial assessments, teaching and etc. A RN did not sign anything or us. We practiced in our own scope based off the NPA.

Specializes in CVICU.
It amazes me the replies that have originated from the original post. Talk about going off on a tangent. The original post was by an LPN who is sick and tired of RNs belittling their profession and experience and just wants some professional respect in the workplace. I'm assuming there is a condescending tone to this question so my answer is going to be very blunt as I don't believe it even deserves a reply since it seems to be coming from yet another RN who doesn't have respect for his/her co-workers (yes, that's what we are, your CO-WORKERS). You want to know what state I am from? I see you have a computer. There are 50 states in the United States. Look up the nurse practice act for the scope of an LPN in each one and then you can narrow down your choices. As for a "cite" for my information, this is an online discussion forum not a research paper. Would you like that "cite" in APA format? I stated that it is only a handful of the things that I am allowed to do in my state and have done for close to 15 years. I didn't work for backwoodsy facilities. The hospital at the time was the largest hospital organization in the United States and very well may still be. The long term care facility IS the largest senior living organization in this country. I worked for the hospital from 2002-2009 and the long-term care facility I quit about six months ago because I decided to go back to school to finish the degree that I had almost completed 12 years ago but didn't because I couldn't afford the loss of income (from having less availability at work) to continue the program at that time. The job market is changing for LPNs, not because the BON changed our scope but because facilities are being more selective with what level of education that they will hire, mainly due to MAGNET status requirements. If you want proof of what my job requirements were, find the job descriptions while you are looking up the LPN scopes. I don't owe you anything. The original post was not meant to have a bunch of bullies tell the writer why they don't deserve mutual respect in the workplace. It was an LPN tired of being belittled by her co-workers. Like you, we have gone to school, maybe not as long, but we are far more educated than a medication aide (which can be as little as an 8 hour class in a facility about how to pass meds in an ALF) and have most of the same skill base. It varies from state to state, this is how things are in mine. Maybe things would be different if everyone was required to work their way up the professional latter...start as a CNA, work as one while going to school to become an LPN, then work as an LPN while going to school to complete the RN...maybe then we could all respect each other and what we contribute to the workforce. Until then, there will always be someone who didn't put in the time at the lower level to truly understand how much that person really does each day.

Didn't mean to offend you, I just deal in facts rather than assumption. So I was curious to do research for myself to have a greater knowledge base, so that I may know where LPN's have the same scope of practice as RN's….that's all.

I have had some of the worse jobs you could imagine, since I was a high school drop out until the age of 35. So understand thinking no one respects you, based simply off lack of education. That is not the case for me, as I now realize simple stating ideas that you heard or have seen does not make them a fact. Seeing the scope of practice and understanding what it means would be fact based.

Specializes in hospice.

I thought the original poster was bothered by people in NCLEX discussion groups stating that LPNs could not do certain things, which is actually true in the imaginary world of NCLEX. I think the discussion has really gone off on a tangent by getting into issues of respect for co-workers. I have a ton of things to say about respect for co-workers, but I'm going to say them in a different thread.

The original post was by an LPN who is sick and tired of RNs belittling their profession and experience and just wants some professional respect in the workplace.
+ Join the Discussion