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Discussion

Question about certification to give chemo

Hi! I recently heard that if you are in nursing school you can take some sort of class and get certified to give chemotherapy. Does anyone know if this is true and if it is how do I find a class close to me to take? About how much would it cost and how long would it take?

Featured Replies

None that I know of. Nor would I advise taking one as a student.

In fact most good facilities, require you go through RN orientation and/or require 6-12 monthes experience before permitting one to give chemo. As far as I know, most places require an RN license to give chemo (not permitted for LPNs to hang chemo).

The ONS has a two day academic course that will let you be issued a card that shows that you are educated to their chemo standards, but it is made clear in that course that you still must do a practicum (hands on demonstration) to be "certified" to give chemo in your facility. And that practicum (in good facilities) requires you to have a nursing license.

While there are facilities that will let "any" nurse hang chemo, it is not an appropriate/optimal situation.

It actually is an excellent idea to work as an RN/LPN on an onco floor before taking the ONS course. You can become familiar with the basic drugs (even if not hanging them) and have a working knowledge to go into the course with.

  • Experts

You need to check hospital policy regarding nursing students giving chemotherapy. Most chemo is IV and most hospitals are very particular about which RNs they let push that stuff into people's veins. If there is a hospital letting student nurses do this, then you need to talk to the people in charge of the oncology unit of that hospital. They will know where you need to go to get the training.

NONE of our students can give chemotherapy or experimental drugs. The only exception to this I know is the administration of oral Hydroxyurea (Hydrea) to patients with sickle cell anemia or the administration of oral tamoxifen (Nolvadex) to patients suffering from breast cancer. Same for all nursing schools and hospitals in our region.

  • Author

Thank you to everyone who answered this. My friend told me that students could but I wasn't sure about it. It didn't sound right to me but I just wanted to know.

Thanks again!

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