do you have to necessary be a CNA to become an lpn?!

[margueritef]

Hi guys

OK I would like to attend nursing school to become an lpn. But I've never been a CNA.

Now I've heard people say you have to be a CNA to earn experince ,I just would like to make sure.

Also I work a 40 hour job and also have a new born son it will take a year to finish. But I feel this is the best opportunity for me to support my son..I know I will miss him a lot so should I do it?

[Murse901, MSN, RN]

Even in some of the post above there shows a lack of respect to the value of the role of a cna....while it certainly isn't a glamorous job it's a role that all nurses should respect.

I hope that you're not referring to my post above. Stating that CNA work does not prepare you for the responsibility of nursing is not disrespectful. It's simply a statement of opinion. I did mention that CNA work does get you used to patient contact, but offered an alternative path to obtain healthcare experience.

Sure, there are RN's out there who were never CNA's, and they suck. There are RN's out there who *were* CNA's and they suck. There are RN's out there who were never CNA's, and they're fantastic. There are RN's out there who *were* CNA's, and they're fantastic. I don't think that one is a measure of the other.

[Fiona59]

Some states require it and some do not. Arkansas, for example, requires students to be CNA's before LPN or RN. I don't really understand the logic behind it, as CNA work does not prepare you for nursing other than getting used to patient contact.

If you're deciding on a pre-nursing career to get your hands dirty, I would go with EMT instead. You'll get more experience with skills, patient assessment, interacting directly with physicians and other nurses, and learning to control pucker factor when things go bad. Also, no changing diapers.

I guess it all depends on where in the world you are.

The training for PN is two years here and NA experience isn't required.

EMTs do have contact with incontinent patients and *shudder* even those with colostomies *gasp*. They do get to deal with that stuff.

It's a very different career choice than nursing. Working in -35C at the side of the road isn't for everybody.

[MoopleRN]

Some states require it and some do not. Arkansas, for example, requires students to be CNA's before LPN or RN. I don't really understand the logic behind it, as CNA work does not prepare you for nursing other than getting used to patient contact.

If you're deciding on a pre-nursing career to get your hands dirty, I would go with EMT instead. You'll get more experience with skills, patient assessment, interacting directly with physicians and other nurses, and learning to control pucker factor when things go bad. Also, no changing diapers.

CNA work does not prepare you for nursing other than getting used to patient contact? And "getting used to patient contact" isn't valuable experience before you become a nurse? Working as a CNA/PCT is, IMO, extremely valuable experience and should be required before acceptance to a nursing program for 2 reasons:

1) it can weed out the people who don't want to change diapers (poo happens, nurses change diapers sometimes... sometimes nurses change diapers a LOT)

2) EMTs provide a valuable service but the time they interact with the patient is very short-lived compared with the time a nurse/CNA spends with that patient.

I think it SHOULD be required that nursing students work as CNAs/PCTs before they are accepted into nursing programs. It's not just the weeding out factor I mentioned previously, it's also the skills you learn/will use once you are a nurse. EMTs provide vert short term care, nurses provide longer term care once patients are admitted. Apples. Oranges.

[TDCHIM]

I don't know whether it's the law here in Ohio, but I can tell you that every LPN program around my area requires an STNA certification to enter the program (a family member of mine is currently involved in this process), along with a complex entrance exam that covers stuff like cellular biology, basic genetics, and basic biochem. If you don't do well on the test, you get wait-listed or are denied entry to the program. Clearly they're weeding out those whom they see as "weaker" candidates. I certainly understand the need to look for good candidates. However, I do think this sort of thing heavily favors those who are fresh school grads as opposed to those transitioning from jobs in other fields who might prove to be terrific nurses but simply aren't as recently familiar with such material.

Good luck to you! Each person is different when it comes to what s/he can deal with, so you'll have to determine whether you can successfully handle having so much on your plate.

[hecallsmeDuchess]

I live in Texas and CNA certification was required for point system thingy for the LVN program at the community college I attended and it was also a required when I went to get my BSN. Whether or not you work with it is not really what they were looking for, they just needed to know you got the training and passed the state certification exam.

IMHO, working as a CNA helped me quite a bit as I got over the shock of poop, diapers and miscellaneous body fluids and whatnots long before nursing school and I was able to observe nurses work. Being a CNA gave me first hand experience to what nursing is about, there was no sugar-coating or long tales told to me by anyone as I was there to see all the 'glamour' for myself.

[Aurora77]

I think being a CNA first would be very helpful. I'm close to the end of my LPN program and I wish I had been a CNA first. All those things, like turning and transferring patients, changing occupied beds, etc. that experienced aids make look like a breeze, I still have difficulty with. Looking back, it would have made things a whole lot easier to me. Unfortunately, financially it wouldn't have worked for us.