"Just an LPN"....does anyone else get discouraged?

Nurses LPN/LVN

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Hello nurses!

I have been discouraged lately...I feel like I am constantly fighting off the stigma of being "just an LPN." When people ask what I do, I always say I am a nurse....they then want to know if that means "RN" and of course what hospital do I work at???!!!!! I work in a clinic and have been an LPN for several years. UGGGHHH!!! Anyone else have this challenge?

Denise

HI THERE.

HEY WHEN I WAS GOING TO SCHOOL FOR MY LVN IT TOOK ME 1 YEAR INSTEAD OF 6 MONTHS FOR LPN AND LVN MAKES MORE MONEY!

SO I WOULD TAKE MORE NURSES CAREER THAT HAS MORE EDUCATION AND ALSO IF YOU ARE NOW AN LPN TRY TO GO TO SCHOOL AND TAKE UP RN WITH A BS AND THEN TAKE A MS IN COMPUTER SCIENCE AND A PHD IN PSYCHOLOGY AND ALSO THEOLOGY BUT ALSO TAKE UP SOME EXECUTIVE SECRETARY COURSES OR A CERTIFICATE AND THAT WOULD TAKE YOU SOME LEGAL AND MEDICAL AND ALSO ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARIAL!

TAKE ONLINE CLASSES!

http://aolsearch.aol.com/aol/search?query=FREE%20ONLINE%20COLLEGE

KATHY

HI THERE.

HEY WHEN I WAS GOING TO SCHOOL FOR MY LVN IT TOOK ME 1 YEAR INSTEAD OF 6 MONTHS FOR LPN AND LVN MAKES MORE MONEY!

SO I WOULD TAKE MORE NURSES CAREER THAT HAS MORE EDUCATION AND ALSO IF YOU ARE NOW AN LPN TRY TO GO TO SCHOOL AND TAKE UP RN WITH A BS AND THEN TAKE A MS IN COMPUTER SCIENCE AND A PHD IN PSYCHOLOGY AND ALSO THEOLOGY BUT ALSO TAKE UP SOME EXECUTIVE SECRETARY COURSES OR A CERTIFICATE AND THAT WOULD TAKE YOU SOME LEGAL AND MEDICAL AND ALSO ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARIAL!

TAKE ONLINE CLASSES!

http://aolsearch.aol.com/aol/search?query=FREE%20ONLINE%20COLLEGE

it is mmy understanding that lpn and lvn are the same. It's just called vocational in some parts of the country and practical in others.

[i love being a LPN. I had to train one of the RN at my job because she did not have any clinical skills. I thought all nurse had clinical skills. She blamed it on working in a hospital instead of a long-term care facility. I make good money and I love taking care of people. If I decide later on to become a RN, it will only be for job advancement and money. Hold your heads up LPN's, you know we got it going on. :chuckle :chuckle :p

Specializes in Emergency, management.

I have the utmost respect for all roles and I really think it would be great if being a CNA was a pre-requisite to LPN, and LPN was pre-requisite for RN. I have been all 3 and I really appreciate to contributions each position makes to the patient care team. Each position I held only confirmed that nursing was the career I wanted!

I am an LPN and have faced the same question many times. You do get discouraged and feel like you need to go back to school and prove to those people you are a good Nurse and gain the respect you feel you deserve. I work in a clinic and was making about a dollar more than I made in the hospital. I decided to leave to work PRN at other facilities to get the "big bucks". The Docs at the clinic agreed to bump up my pay to keep me. I now make as much as an RN in the hospital. The Docs accredited it to my work ethic in the clinic. That made me feel very respected as an LPN. They could very easily have replaced me with a MA at much lower wages than I was already making but they wanted me. I still want to pursue my RN, but now, for much different reasons. Do your best as an LPN and people will notice and they will respect you.

Hello nurses!

I have been discouraged lately...I feel like I am constantly fighting off the stigma of being "just an LPN." When people ask what I do, I always say I am a nurse....they then want to know if that means "RN" and of course what hospital do I work at???!!!!! I work in a clinic and have been an LPN for several years. UGGGHHH!!! Anyone else have this challenge?

Denise

I have been just an LPN for almost 36 years.I never had a problem in LTC about a title I worked my way up to ADON.I retired from LTC and went to work in a ER,about 6 months ago.I was floored at the attitude towards LPN'S.In fact just yesterday the RN'S have us wear big red name tags that say LPN'S or RN'S.I just laughed :chuckle because there are only 3 of us in the ER,the cna's get more respect.I do not pay much attention to all this because I like who I am and what I do.If I had wanted to be an RN I would have years ago.I make good money and don't have the responsibilty the Real Nuts (RN) :uhoh3: have.Just be all you can be and do the best you can.A title is just a title .

Sondra

OK, I wasnt going to get into this one, but now your being just as rude..... "RN=Real Nuts? ... come on.....To be honest, there are alot of lpn's out there who are lpn's bcause they couldnt do the book work to become RN's. Not all, but alot. And since your doing your part to down RN's, I figured I would point that out. In my state, hospitals wont even HIRE an LPN. I guess economical factors take a back road there. Dont get me wrong, you can learn alot from an experienced LPN about pt care, procedures and such, and I am not one to devalue them, BUT in todays healthcare, they are being phased out. In many hospitals LPN's are equal to CNA's who can give po meds. Do I devalue CNA's? Absolutely not. Not everybody is willing to do that work, and most who do it are good at it, and they are a credit to the field. LPN"s deserve respect, and by the same token, SO DO REGISTERED NURSES, DOCS, ETC. There willl always be a pecking order. If you feel devalued, go get your RN, since you complain you "do as much if not more than an RN" get the title, the responsibility,the money, the opportunities, but most importantly, THE KNOWLEDGE behind those two letters RN (REGISTERED NURSE). and by the way "sondra"... this post is not directly in response to yours, but the "rn real nut' thing did set me off.

Ann Mann, exec. director of nursing in N.S recently gave a seminare on this very topic . The scope of practice is changing so rapidly that the public is not aware of our abilities. We can now give IM's ( which was unheard of years ago) and still not allowed in some facilities. I have been responsible for the patient TOTAL care when other "nurses" have sat back because they didn't have the practice, but the degree...interesting. I am proud to be hands on and will never be embarassed or belittled when we have a major responsibility in the care of our clients. I also get paid very well, so that's all that matters.

Hello nurses!

I have been discouraged lately...I feel like I am constantly fighting off the stigma of being "just an LPN." When people ask what I do, I always say I am a nurse....they then want to know if that means "RN" and of course what hospital do I work at???!!!!! I work in a clinic and have been an LPN for several years. UGGGHHH!!! Anyone else have this challenge?

Denise

I am sorry Denise for those of us that might be rude and disrespectful to you and other LPNs. It is unfortunate. If I may, though, I would like to let you know about the other side of the arguement. It is a fact that there are many levels of practice when it comes to the all encomapssing term Nursing. I would submit that all of these levels are very important to our patients and good care. The problem comes about as one chooses to become more educated through the various programs that are available. I, in fact, am currently attending school to become an Acute Care NP. It is very difficult for those of us that desire the broader scope of practice to compete with Physicians and PAs, when the belief is out there that a nurse is a nurse is a nurse. Unfortuantely that is NOT the case. Granted there are LPNs that have been on job for 15 yrs who can work circles around RNs and MDs coming out of school, because experience is a very good teacher. Conversely there are RNs who have 15 yrs of experience who could not nurse their way out of a paperbag. I am not offering solutions. If I had the answers I would put them into action. I am simply attempting to give you the other side of the coin.

Hello nurses!

I have been discouraged lately...I feel like I am constantly fighting off the stigma of being "just an LPN." When people ask what I do, I always say I am a nurse....they then want to know if that means "RN" and of course what hospital do I work at???!!!!! I work in a clinic and have been an LPN for several years. UGGGHHH!!! Anyone else have this challenge?

Denise

Denise,

A title does not make a good nurse. I have had the opportunity to work with some phenomenal nurses who happened to be LPNs. I have watched and learned from many great nurses, specially in the clinical area, who just happened to have the title of LPN. So do not get discouraged, people who are insensitive and do not think before they speak are everywhere, and they do not deserve a response.

Have a great day!!

Elizabeth~

Hello nurses!

I have been discouraged lately...I feel like I am constantly fighting off the stigma of being "just an LPN." When people ask what I do, I always say I am a nurse....they then want to know if that means "RN" and of course what hospital do I work at???!!!!! I work in a clinic and have been an LPN for several years. UGGGHHH!!! Anyone else have this challenge?

Denise

I don't know if I would use the word "discouraged," more like pissed off.

One of the RN's I work with often will say things to families like "I'm the only nurse here right now, I'll have to get back to you later..." We work in long term care and he is a supervisor. I have said MANY times, "no, you're the only RN here..." The other day I was working palliative and he walked into the room, interuppted my conversation with a family I have worked hard to foster a relationship with and said, "hi, I'm THE NURSE here tonight, let me know if you need anything" and walked away. They looked at me as if to say, "then who the hell are you?" I have on many occasions gentley reminded him that I have an "N" after my name is well, but the truth is the next time I see him I'm going to rip him a new one. Enough is enough!:angryfire

PS He is a diploma RN and I have just started working on my BScN, so one day I'll be his boss.....

Used to boil my britches when someone used to say just a CNA/LVN/LPN NURSE .I have ran into More nurse grads with know it all mentalty Who used to say that to me and I had over 20 years as a CNA from the old school where we did everything except pass drugs litterally..

Case in point We had a agency RN New grad working with me one night 3-11 I had done all the Pt care for 12 mental health Pt's .Ran all the groups ,because RN refused to help at all RN Sat at the desk.Then one of the Pt's fell broke her hip.I told that RN that the Pt's hip was broken had seen it many times and my husband is a Doc.She stated WHAT DO YOU KNOW YOUR JUST A CNA. RN even forsed the lady to walk on it, refused to do an incedent report or call for x-ray services She said if there is any trouble the next shift can do it.

So I went over her head to My RN Buddy on another unit I had worked with many times ,I begged him to come over and look. He did and lady was fractured in 2 places on the right hip.Comfirmed by X-ray services.

The RN said she was going to write me up for going over her head. I said go ahead,I am JUST A CNA REMEMBER!

I ened up writing her up and needless to say she wasn't allowed back at our hospitail again.

I got the impression she thought CNA ment we were too stupid to go on to get the higher education. All I can say is I try to respect all of my CNA that work for me now .When they tell me something I listen. When they say there is change with the PT .They are my eyes and ears out there. My front line .That's the only way I know what's going on from day to day.

God bless the nurses that see the value in peoples life experances and Not just the title .

True. What is also true is that there are many LPNs who can, (and do) run circles around the RNs they work with.

I work in the ER- and was the first LPN hired into the ER ever by our hospital. Now, there are six of us- and we wouldn't be there if we wern't as good or better than the RNs.

I don't know about you, but i's rather have a seasoned LPN taking care of me than a new RN... Just like I'd rather see a seasoned PA or NP before a resident.

There was a TV ad campaign that really hurt us a few years ago- the tagline was "When you visit the hospital, ask for a Real Nurse, an RN." Bunk.

I've been reading this post and I just have to put in my two cents.

I respect everyone in the nursing profession. I've worked as a CNA (and never did I refer to myself as a nurse) as some have stated in their posts. I worked my way through RN school working as a CNA. Just before graduating with my RN I challenged the LPN boards so that I could work as a nurse and gain experience.

I did not refer to myself as an RN student while I worked because I saw and heard the backlash from the other LPN's toward the RN's for no reason.

None of the nurses new that I was an RN student and that I challenged the LPN boards. I was a good nurse even though I was new.

I graduated from Jr. College and immediately went on for my BSN because I wanted go further. I graduated two years ago and I'm now going to graduate school for Adult NP.

Not ALL RN's are out to get LPN's. I don't work with any in the ICU but there was a time when we were side by side working together.

Most nurses are nervous and intimidated after graduating so to say that someone would rather have a seasoned LPN over a new RN grad is not a fair comparison.

I worked my butt off to get through RN school, it was not a one year program like the LPN schools but it was intense. I chose to challenge the LPN test to get my feet wet; my fellow colleagues thought I was a seasoned LPN when I was a scared RN student who knew her stuff.

There may be LPN that "run circles around RN's" but there are also RN's that "run circles around LPN's".

One person commented on making 65K as an LPN w/agency. As an RN working in the ICU w/ agency, I made 92K two years ago, and that was on the low side.

nothing else said,

DeniseRNBSN

not disgruntled, just keeping it real... :chuckle

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