pap smears

Never. Completely out of their scope of practice.

no. it is out of their scope of practice.

Why do you ask?

MY thought was maybe it wasn't a pap but a culture or fern or something, all of which would be in our scope, but a lay person may not know the difference. Sorry if you are not a lay person but you never can tell.

Where I work, LPNs would not do ferns or cultures, either. No spec exams. Only RN's do them.

Where I work we do everything that RNs do with a very few exceptions.

Maybe a different State Practice thing, or something. Here RN's do all the assessments, and careplanning; LPN's do not, except with cosignature of RN's. That may be why we do not hire LPNs in OB around here.They can't even push IV meds here, which is a shame. Ferning and spec exams would be way out their scope here, at least where I work.

Here scope is left up to individual hospital policy for LPNs. The only thing I can think if off the top of my head that an Rn MUST do at my hospital is sign off on initial assesment and push versed. If I think of more I will add them later. I however refuse certain pts. that I feel are outside MY scope or that I feel I don't have enough training to do. ie, mg pts, transfusions, if they're sick enough to need mg or blood they are sick enough to need a RN JMO.

In our unit, CCU/ICU, LPN's can even take care of s/p CABG, do blood transfusions (after IV competency). They are LPN's for 20-25 yrs already in that same unit.

i just recently completed the lpn expanded iv therapy course. in iowa, we cannot do blood transfusions, 1st doses of any meds, give heparin, iv pushes or do anything with an iv on a patient under 12 years old or under 80 pounds. also, we can only start/give meds on peripheral access. no picc lines etc.

i know this thread took a turn from the original subject, sorry!