I am a little confused by your article.
You appear to have written from both sides of your argument but at the same time focus only on the LPN/LVN side. And it is hard to follow as it appears you jump from idea to idea-but I feel this is more of the argument stand point. LPN/LVN versus RN or both...it's hard to see which side you're writing from.
You list several facts you found but I am going to offer some counter facts.
The reason for this is the exact same as a RN. The LPN/LVN is a licensed healthcare profession. This means that certain laws govern both of us. And laws vary from state to state. There is the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) who over see these laws but each state has their own State Board of Nursing (BON) and the Nurse Practice Act which we practice under. That you practice under. And the same thing goes for doctors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, etc. Every healthcare professional has their own governing body (as I understand it). It's complicated but that's the way it works. Which is why it is so hard to find an 'exact definition' of an LPN/LVN. Same goes for the definition of a RN.
Now the article you mentioned, I looked it up. "The role of an LPN is, as the name suggests, practical. LPNs are expected to report even minor changes in patient care to a registered nurse or other medical professional. As for what they actually do on the job, often it’s a lot!" In the full context, the author is not degrading LPN's at all. In fact, the article is just comparing the two roles and not pitting them against each other. Having worked with many LPN's, and learned from them as well, I know this is a fact. Fun fact, I learned my IV skills from a LPN and now I'm the go to IV sticker on my floor!!!
Alright, now lets tackle on who supervises who. Again, this varies state by state and facility. Most of the time, RN's will be supervised by other RN's. This is correct. There is more to this however. There is a chain of command. Let's use my facility, a hospital, as an example. On my floor, there are floor nurses. We are 'supervised' by a charge nurse. However, this charge nurse has the same amount of education that we do. BSN, ADN, and diploma (three year degree). The charge nurse role is to support us, offer assistance when needed, round with providers and case managers, and numerous other things. It is a leadership role. Any floor nurse with leadership skills and enough floor experience can be charge nurse. Above us and charge is the nurse manager. This position is held by a MSN. And it is a manager role. Exactly like it sounds. Above her is a divisional nurse manager. And it goes all the way to the top to CNO and CEO.
Despite what your article says, doctors do not supervise us. They work beside us. This isn't to say this isn't the case in other offices or hospitals. But from my personnel experience and to give you an example. But in general, going back to laws, they do not supervise us as they have their own governing body that supervises them and their own supervisors.
This. These are not specializations but certifications. Yes, you can be a LPN/LVN working on a cardiac floor or on a pediatric floor but you would get these as certifications. ACLS, PALS, NALS, and PEARS means you are able to do emergent skills such as intubation or push emergent drugs above the basic skills of CPR (BLS) for each specialized population. And even then, I am tempted to say these vary state by state and facility. And then there are specialization certifications such as CCRN, CMSRN, CDN, CWORN, and many more. These are classes that you have to have so many years experience and have to prove your license. Facilities will usually offer a course for these. But be careful about throwing around the term "specialization" or "certification" as people study very hard for these and are proud to obtain them. They're essentially like taking boards all over again.
I really don't know what you are saying here. I am genuinely confused. I obtained my BSN several years ago and use the skills I learned in clinical every day. Yes, it is true we do not have to be certified for most, if any, procedures. Do I have to be certified to insert an IV? Change a dressing? Switch out a colostomy bag? Insert a catheter? Calculate a rate for a cardiac or insulin drip? No. But if I need help I can call on a nurse who has pursued further education in those skills for help on guidance on how to do so. And then continue with their recommendations.
I would also like to add that you mentioned that you didn't know if there was a push towards degrees which is leading towards to misrepresentation of LPNs/LVNs. In short-kind of. I vaguely remember in undergrad learning about why the LPN came about. And it was due the true nursing shortage many, many years ago- I believe during WW1 to WW2. There was a shortage of nurses due to the war and nursing programs created 'quick' programs to fill the need. The LPN/LVN was created to fill in the gap as well as the diploma degree. Both of these are being phased out as well as the ADN degree as the push for the BSN degree and 'evidenced based' programs become the norm.
In conclusion, I commend my LPN/LVN colleagues. As I said, I learned my IV skills from a LPN and I'm the go to person for IV sticks now. Easy and little old lady with CHF skin hard. I agree there is a lot of confusion on the role of LPNs/LVNs but I believe this is solely due to fact that there aren't that many around any more. In my facility, they are required to work on obtaining their BSN RN to continue working there. There is also a lot of confusion on what they can and can't do and this has to do with the various state laws that surround both RN's and LPNs/LVNs. I recommend that both RNs and LPNs/LVNs look at their state legislature to figure out their scope of practice so we can continue to work together. After all, both our job descriptions are anything but simple.
