NCLEX and IV certification

[ereed1304]

I am currently in a nursing program within the state of california and will be taking my nclex at the end of this year. My problem is that once I have completed the program, my husband and I will be moving out of state (most likely to minnestoa but possibly to colorado). California LVN/LPN programs do not include IV certification within their programs. If I try to transfer my license from California to a state that requires IV certification, will I encounter a problem? Also, would it be better to take my IV certification course in california or would it be best to wait until I have moved to another state? My other dilemma is whether to take the NCLEX in California or to take it in the state that my husband and I decide to move to. Any information would be grately appreciated! Thanks!

[lifeisgood2012]

I am new here and my knowledge is very limited - but where I live (east coast) most places do on the job training with things like that if it is needed - so I would wait to see if you are moving to a state that needs it. I graduated from a school in TN and they did not do IV certification, but I don't need it where I moved (NC). TN and NC are compact states - so my other advice would be to make sure wherever you move is a compact state - meaning it can transfer your license over. Something I learned upon moving here that I was not told by my LPN program was just because they are a compact state (TN with NC) didn't mean my license would transfer over automatically - even tho my license said multi-state I still had to pay an almost 200 fee to get my license/background check in the state of NC. Check with your nursing instructors about that.

As far as the NCLEX goes, I don't know how to best advise you. I would recommend waiting to see when you get a date to take it - I wanted to get mine out of the way ASAP so I went ahead and took it as soon as I got my date in Jan. If you are moving immediately make sure you have everything in order and set up so you can schedule your exam ASAP after your move. For me, I didn' want to put it off and wait until my move here - the move was stressful enough without having tostudy while moving. Just my opinion. Good luck in you rprogram!

[KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN]

My program did not offer IV certification either. Maybe you could look for an IV class at a local community college(that's what I'm doing too). As for the NCLEX, if you're going to move, I would apply for licensure in the state that you're moving to, and skip California. That way, you don't have to worry about receiving initial licensure there & then applying for endorsement in your new state..that's a lot of time & money!

[UpTheLadder12]

As far as IV, look up the Scope of Practice in the states you might move to to see if it's even as issue. I just took IV Cert and was told that because of layoffs at BVNPT, it takes up to 6 months to get the cert to show up on your actual license (you become Class C). So you might not even get the official cert on your license by the time you move, although you will have the paper cert on hand.

The other option is, that if the state you move to has reciprocity anyway, they may not require proof of IV cert and just expect you to work within the state scope of practice, and it would be up to your employer to make sure you are competent with IV/blood draw. In this case, the class might be valuable so that you do have some training before you get thrown to the wolves.

Good luck!