Nursing Shortage? Yeah right...

Nurses New Nurse

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Specializes in Cardiac Stepdown and CVSICU.

there is supposed to be this huge nursing shortage but i surely can't tell. i am in the rn program at my school and after the first year of clinicals, you qualify to sit for the pn examination and they give you the diploma (actually you earned it). i thought it would be a good idea to get the lpn to try to get some experience over the summer and continuing through the rn program.

after almost giving myself an ulcer stressing over the nclex-pn and getting the license, i have now found that i am not able to get a job in our area as an lpn. we have 1 hospital in my area and a smaller one 25 miles away (both owned by the same entity) but both are no longer hiring lpns as they are trying to acquire "magnet" status. the next closest hospital is 55 miles away. the local long term facilities and agencies want at least one year of experience. from where?

at this point, i am so very discouraged. i am in the night/weekend nursing program and was looking forward to working as an lpn and gaining some experience before adn graduation. i feel like i wasted $291....along with my 15 other classmates who are in the same boat...

is anyone else experiencing the same thing? :angryfire

Very few acute care facilities in the NY area are using LPN's they are strictly RN for many good reasons. LTC facilities usually use LPN's and that me be a good starting point for you.

I'm sorry you're frustrated, but this has been the case for some time now (years even) when it comes to LPNs in hospitals/acute care. I'm in NY, and there are very limited opportunities for LPNs. The fact is, the huge huge majority of the open positions require RN education and licensure.

There are, however, frequent openings in LTC. If you want to gain practice with large med passes and caring for geriatric patients (and lots of them!) perhaps this is an option for you.

Another positive about sitting for the PN exam is that the Jitters of the Unknown won't faze you when it comes time to take the RN exam--you've already conquered NCLEX once! :)

Specializes in Geriatrics.

Hospitals don't consider LPN's to be Nurses, here in Massachusetts they train CNA's to do the LPN job ( except passing meds) for less money. Why pay a new grad LPN $15/hr when you can pay a CNA $10 and call them a TA. How do I know this is true?? I worked at a major training hospital here for 3 1/2 yrs as a TA. Result, clinicals were a breeze for me, I learned all that stuff years before.

I'm sorry to hear about your bad experience. It is very difficult to find jobs as an LPN in my area as well, and I think any school that tells you it's a good idea to get the LPN first may be acting a little unethically. The should be honest with students and tell them that the LPN is pretty much a waste of time, and that getting it often just wastes the money of the student. Then this with information in hand, the student can made an educated decision. The best consumer is an educated consumer.

Specializes in TELEMETRY/CARDIAC.

they hire them at my hospital in fort walton beach, florida and they let a girl who was working on her RN take the test to be an LPN. THese LPN programs are grueling and we get more clinical time and usually end up with more experience. Don't know where some of that info is coming from but it is inaccurate as far as florida is concerned. I have worked with some fantastic nurses and they have all been LPN's before they became RNs

There are, however, frequent openings in LTC. If you want to gain practice with large med passes and caring for geriatric patients (and lots of them!) perhaps this is an option for you.

Another positive about sitting for the PN exam is that the Jitters of the Unknown won't faze you when it comes time to take the RN exam--you've already conquered NCLEX once! :)

Outstanding advice. And the "nursing shortage" is real, although it varies in intensity by region. Once you have your RN, you should have no problem finding work.

Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

I was an LPN for two years while I completed the ADN. I worked in LTC while an LPN and it got me some good basic assessment skills. Even if this isn't where you want to work forever, it is good experience. Good luck.

Specializes in Cardiac Stepdown and CVSICU.
i'm sorry you're frustrated, but this has been the case for some time now (years even) when it comes to lpns in hospitals/acute care. i'm in ny, and there are very limited opportunities for lpns. the fact is, the huge huge majority of the open positions require rn education and licensure.

there are, however, frequent openings in ltc. if you want to gain practice with large med passes and caring for geriatric patients (and lots of them!) perhaps this is an option for you.

another positive about sitting for the pn exam is that the jitters of the unknown won't faze you when it comes time to take the rn exam--you've already conquered nclex once! :)

thank everyone for the good advice. i am currently checking with all of the long term facilities in the area. i am definitely not above working anywhere. i think any facility including rehab, ltc, etc. will at least give me a chance to gain experience in assessment as well as other nursing skills.

In Boston an LPN/LVN is unheard of in any hospital. I have just graduated from nursing school with my associates and I already have a BS. I'm having an awful time finding a job. I know a girl who graduated with a BSN from a pretty prestigious college and had to work in a nursing home for a while before landing a job in a hospital. So I hear you loud and clear, THERE IS NO NURSING SHORTAGE, at least not in massachusetts.

This is not anything new, we have been stating that here for sometime. And I have actually not been a fan of getting the LPN license while you are working on your RN. You are severely limited as to where you can find work, usually not in a hospital setting. I much favor getting the experience as a nurse tech and then you are in a hospital and able to do more procedures and will get better experience if that is what you are looking for.

There are also programs that hire you as an extern and you are assigned to work with one RN for most of that time. You will learn things that you never thought that you would get to see or be part of.

Usually much easier to get a job as a nurse extern in a hospital while you are a student in an RN program then it will be to find a position as an LPN. If your goal is to work in a hospital, then the experience gained there while a student is much more beneficial to you. And makes you more marketable to that facility when you do get your RN.

Just my two cents on it, for what it is worth.

And not all areas have nursing shortages, that is just how things are. Areas where more wish to work do not have the shortages like other areas have. Just supply and demand. And if an area that has a large number of nursing programs, you may find it harder to get work in that area.

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