lpn a nurse

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is it okay to call yourself a nurse if you are lpn?

i thought lpn was nurses assistant, but i just started school and everyone in the class is saying things like' why did you want to be a nurse" etc , meaning lpn is a nurse????

also what is cna?

i thought lpn was bottem of the totem poll is that true??

thanks for any imput.

thank you, im glad to know i wasnt asking a tottaly obovius question, there seem to be many factors that decide what a lpn is

Specializes in ICU, PICC Nurse, Nursing Supervisor.

in texas the our scope of practice is wide open. there is only a couple of things we are not allowed to do such as.

1) pronounce death

2) spike blood

3) there are several iv drugs we cannot push

4) re-insert a g- tube

5) do initial assessment in the hospital ltc is s different story.

6) picc line insertions

however, if we experience any limits it is facility policy because texas has such a wide open practice for lvn's.

i think each state has their practice act. for instance, i am an lvn in california. we cannot do the initial assessment, we can "gather data". so if a patient is admitted directly, we cannot do that initial assessment. i can re-assess though. i also cannot hang iv piggy backs or push iv drugs. since i am iv certified, i can initiate and maintain maintenance fluids. i can also hang blood and blood products and flush saline locks with normal saline. it is not my facility that governs what i can and cannot do, it is my board of nursing in ca.
Specializes in LTC, cardiac, ortho rehab.

hmmmm scope of practice for an lvn... this is kinda hard to explain but i guess ill tell you the stuff i do. lvn may administer medications such as oral route, gt, and various injections. with aditional certifications, lvns are able to collect blood, start iv lines, hang iv solutions, and flush ivs but we are not allowed to administer iv piggy back meds. lvns are able to perform procedures such as foley catheter insertions and flushes, ng tubes, flushing and replacing gts( if the doc orders), wound care as ordered by md, etc etc. furthermore, there are additional certifications that the lvn may acquire such as a wound specialist(cws) and pharmacology. check the lvn forum for more information.

there are a lot of things that lvns can do, its just that my mind is kinda blank right now(always happens the day before i work lol).

many people do not know what an lvn/lpn is, and many belittle lvns(specially paramedics), but the truth is that we are nurses and we have a license to prove it.

Yes. LPN/LVN are definately nurses. I'm tired of others saying that LPN/LVN are not real nurses. techos 32

I have a student in my nursing program who is from Canada. She said that in Canada they don't consider LPNs "nurses".:flowersfo

Specializes in Brain injury,vent,peds ,geriatrics,home.

Not to sound mean,but why are you taking a course to be an LPN if you dont know what it is???I dont consider myself the bottom of the barrell nurse,,A CNA is a certified nursing assistant.Good luck with your education to be an LPN.

Specializes in Med/Surg, LTC/Geriatric.
I have a student in my nursing program who is from Canada. She said that in Canada they don't consider LPNs "nurses".:flowersfo

I'm in Canada and about to take the LPN course. I wouldn't be taking it if and LPN were not considered a nurse in Canada.

I've never heard that before!!

I'm in Canada and about to take the LPN course. I wouldn't be taking it if and LPN were not considered a nurse in Canada.

I've never heard that before!!

Me either. Some individual nurses might hold that belief( I don't). The scope of practice varies widely province to province and some of the confusion on what they can and can't do comes from the fact that what they are allowed to do varies facility to facility( where I work- they can do the inital assessment, im's, etc)

We have an iv team so even the RN's who aren't on that team have nothing at all to do with iv's( home care) Same with compression dressings like profore and surepress- only rn and the rn has to take a mini course for it! The LPN can't do pd dressings, nephrostomy tube care, trach care( this is specific to MY workplace - I know LPN's can do pd dressings and other stuff I mentioned. We are about 1/2 lpn and 1/2 rn right now- used to be wayyyy more rn's then lpns but the scope of practice at my workplace was widened.

oh and in canada we tend to use PSW ( personal support worker) or HCA ( home care attendant or Health Care aide) instead of CNA

Specializes in Acute Care, Rehab, Palliative.
I have a student in my nursing program who is from Canada. She said that in Canada they don't consider LPNs "nurses".:flowersfo

I am a newly graduated Registered Practical Nurse from Canada and I am definitely a NURSE!!!! :nurse:

Specializes in Maternity.

yes LPN are nurses and CNA r certified nursing assistants.LPN needs to pass N-clex PN in order to practice as a NURSE. answer to ur question yes LPN are nurses. ;)

Specializes in Peds(PICU, NICU float), PDN, ICU.

Your post scares me (and I mean it in the nicest way possible). What scares me is that it appears you have not researched the program and career before starting. Being a nurse is not a joke or something you do on a whim. Choosing this career is something that should be taken very seriously. I'm an LPN and do almost everything the RN does, I just get paid a little less (ok a lot less) than the RN. Maybe you should consider going to school to be a CNA first and then go from there.

What are some of your reasons for choosing this program/career? Just curious, as many nurses have many different reasons for becoming a nurse.

Check your BON (Board of Nursing) for the scope of practice to find out what you can and can't do as an LPN. That will give you an idea of what you will be taught to do. By the way, as others have said....LPN is a nurse. There are some RN's who look down on LPN's but most don't. If you are a good nurse and earn trust from the RN's you work with you won't have a problem. Good luck.

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