"Are you an RN OR LPN ????"

[notsosupernurse]

Okay, I guess I have a question relating to....well I'll just give the situation...I usually introduce my self to my patients after I recieve my assignment and report. And I start out..."Hi, My name is Ally and I will be your nurse today....." Then usually 2 times out of 10....Ill get a question from my patient saying " Are you an LPN OR RN? " I have no problem answering thier question after that. but I was wondering does this happen to anyone else but me?........

I don't know what I feel about it really but i find it kind of odd that you get patients with no medical background asking whether youre and LPN or an RN...Just makes me feel alittle uneasy sometimes...lol... IT's like Hey I wonder is it for legal purposes.....

[ohmeowzer RN, RN]

i get that question alot. i am a RN and a LPN i work with had trouble with a patient and wouldn't let her take care of her because she was a LPN. i found the situation disgusting.. people can be so rude and not care about anyone's feelings but their own. i told her the LPN was just as capable as i was.. but she refused and i ended up taking care of her ... she was a pharmacy tech and told me " your a RN just do your Job , and please put in my chart no LPN's are to take care of me" what a low life she was... glad she finally took her sorry butt home...

[phlebotomist_26]

i think they are just curious. lol. but i really dont know. i am a student for lpn. but will you please send me a message and tell me how to post a question. i just joined this site and i have no idea how to post a question. i watched the little intro vidoe too.

[queenjean]

I wonder if she requested the pharmacist to personally handle all her medications and med orders, or was it acceptable for the pharmacy techs to be involved as well????

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

I am an LPN and I have never been asked. Sometimes, though, a patient or their family member will notice the "LPN" on my ID badge and strike up a conversation about that.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

I wonder if she requested the pharmacist to personally handle all her medications and med orders, or was it acceptable for the pharmacy techs to be involved as well????

Huh? Did I miss something?

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

i think they are just curious. lol. but i really dont know. i am a student for lpn. but will you please send me a message and tell me how to post a question. i just joined this site and i have no idea how to post a question. i watched the little intro vidoe too.

welcome to all nurses and congratulations on going to school! if you go to the general nursing discussion thread, you can click on it at the top of this page and look to the left near the top and you'll see a blue square which says .

that's all there is to it. welcome aboard

[SKM-NURSIEPOOH, BSN, RN]

huh? did i miss something?

lol! i think the point missed was the fact that this patient is a pharmacy *tech* & not an pharmd. how would this patient feel if & when the time comes that customers states..."i don't want any pharmacy techs involved in filling-out my pharmacy orders!" would this patient appreciate somebody telling the pharmd to put this stipulation onto their record at the pharmacy? i think not...lol! this patient would be the first to be insulted...lol!

cheers :cheers: ,

moe

[SharonH, RN]

The awkwardness you feel is understandable but I think it can be avoided if you introduce yourself and state that you are an LPN and you will be providing their care today, etc. A few times over the years when charging, I've had some jerk acting silly about having an LPN provide their care but trust me those people are jerks to everyone. If you are open and matter-of-fact about your position and you convey confidence about it, then the patient will pick up on it.

[SKM-NURSIEPOOH, BSN, RN]

i've been asked this question more outside of the hospital or ltc facilities than on the job...and it ****es me off because it's not the question per se, but how it's said.

the question, whenever posed, was always done so with the flavor of..."are you an lpn/lvn (lets pretend nurse) or rn (real nurse)?"...with the inference on "....real nurse" while being scrutinized...:angryfire!

i take great pleasure in answering those folks that i'm nurse with 12 years of experience, but when pressed, i simply state that i'm *both*! that just take them aback & they usually leave me alone then...lol!

but when i'm on the job, i let my id badge state whatever credentials i have at that particular time. sometimes, i work agency as a lpn in the assistant living genre because i just need a break from working the units (icu/pacu) which i do on a regular basis.

cheers :cheers:,

moe

[jackson145]

Nurses are always insistant that a patient know that the CNA/tech isn't a nurse. Why would they be bothered that the patient now wants to know what type of nurse they are?

Just like nurses feel strongly about a tech's status being announced immediately, perhaps patients are starting to feel like qualifications and levels of education are more important than ability.

[notsosupernurse]

My question would be why do you have a problem stating that you're an LPN prior to the patient asking? In all honesty it sounds like you may be worried that the patient may rather have an RN? I understand that feeling as I used to be an LPN.

The LPN's I worked with were "awesome" and I would feel extremely comfortable with any of them taking care of me. Show your professionalism and the title won't mean a thing.

When I go get pts for imaging I tell them "Hi my name is _______, I am an RN and I work in medical imaging, I will be giving you _______medication or whatever the case may be. I think the patient should know and no matter what you are an RN or an LPN state it proudly from the git-go. I do know that up on the floor each room has dry erase board with all the necessary information written on it for the day.

hi thanks for the response, but i did clearly state in my post that i did not have a problem stating my title...i always answer truthfully and i see no reason not to. i was a cna for 4 years before i became a nurse, and an HHA for two years before that. and then i would state..."Hi my name is Ally and I am your aide today"....I just feel a little awkward for some reason when that is asked. I Just do not feel right reciting initials to the patient. I mean..If you are a BSN ,CRNP,CRNA...would you say" hi im ally and im your BSN, CRNP, OR CRNA Today" ??? It just sounds like jargon to me. Sometimes I have to stop my doctor when he is explaining my test results or my health information to me because he assumes because I am a nurse that I may understand all his advanced medical explanation/terminology :)...To sum it up I gladly give all info that is requested of me from the patient as long as the Law or HIPPA Permits. The fact that the patients are becoming more inquisitive about whether a nurse is an RN or LPN may suggest patient awareness ...which is great. Just a little awkward feeling I get when it is asked that I can't explain or put my finger on goes through me when it is asked...

[notsosupernurse]

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