Queenietoo

Does anyone know what LPN/LVN pay is for state of Louisiana? I'm seriously considering a move to that state.

Hi, I am Karen. I graduated from the LPN program in June 2006. I work on the medical floor in a hospital. After putting much thought into it, I have decided to enroll into the Excelsior program and prusue my RN. Good luck to everyone!

I'm glad to come across this forum. I am considering College Network. For some of us, the most important consideration is not money, it's convience and being able to pass the courses. I'm sure you can get the books off ebay much cheaper, but some of us do not enjoy nor have the time for all that ebay shopping, and jumping from website to website for support. My only concern is that they are legitimate and their material is indeed what they claim, a condensed version of what you need to know.

I work on the medical floor of a hospital. Each nurse, LPN's and RN's are assigned to equal amt. of pts. We usually have 2 CNA's that share the hall. LPN's and RN's are equally responsible for all treatments, med. administration, charting, etc.. of their pt. The CNA's usually handle most of the diaper changes, baths, etc... however, when CNA's are busy we never let a pt. lay in their own waste, or refuse to empty a bsc or bp while waiting for an aide to do it. RN's and LPN's alike do it. The "dirty" work is never deligated to an LPN just because they are an "LPN". One nurse is not treated different from the other where I work. "Dirty" work is part of nursing, RN or LPN. Takes a lot of teamwork.

Where I live LPN's are hired for hospice. The RN must do so many sup visits, but the LPN does routine visits.

I'm an LPN and I push drugs at my hospital. There a few skills I can't do such as D/C a central line, spike the bag on a unit of blood products. LPN's also do the RN assessments on new admits.

I started my first job after graduation last August. I was started at $11.00 base pay, $1.25 per hour for evening diff., and an additional $1.75 on weekends. I have to work every other weekend. After I was there 6 months I was raised to $12.00 base because I advanced to LPN II. We get an annual review every year and will get an increase of 0-4% increase depending on our performance. Not too good. Around here long term care pays better for LPN, also home health, but if you want to get skills you work at the hospital. I wish we had a union here in Ok.

We have to take an exam as well before they will recommend us to the State Boards. It is 2,000 questions and we have to pass with a 90%. We have to take it while we are doing our preceptorship.

When I left CA 12 years ago my utilities were not even close to that. Maybe rates have gone up. My utilities are close to $300.00 a month, but our weather is more severe. 19 deg. yesterday morning (shivering). We can make a little more in LTC, but I want to work at the hospital, so I'll live with it.

I moved here from Los Angeles County approx. 12 years ago. It's true, housing is much lower here. You can get a 3 bedroom for $100,000 in S.E. OK depending where you buy. That is a simple middle class neighborhood. Everything else is as high or higher. My food bill is more. My utilities are more. Even with the cost of housing so much lower, I still think 10.35 is too low.

Reading this thread makes me appreciate my instructors very much. They give us alot of homework and I get tired of it sometimes, but they are very helpful and constantly encourage us. When we are at clinicals, they encourage us to get all the experience we can. When an opportunity arises for us to do a skill, we page them and they come to supervise us while we perform the skill. They always go over it with us before we go into the patient's room, and they encourage us and tell us how well we did. If we make a mistake they tell us it's okay because we are learning. I wish everyone could have instructor's like mine, I learn so much from them at clinicals. They work with us so much, when we took our state assessment test a few weeks ago, our entire class was above the national average. I hope you don't drop out of nursing school. You have made it this far. Please don't let bad instructors ruin it for you.

blue chip, I live in OK as well. I'm a nursing student. Our hospital starts LPN's out at 10.35. I'm working so hard in school, I'm not too happy about rate of salary. It's not much to look forward to. It seems to me if there was such a nursing shortage they would up the pay a little. I don't understand. The cost of living here is not really that much lower than other places.