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

rallie · Jan 10, 2008

i need some help about military nursing. its history and some roles, etc. i cant find any at any site oh pLs heLp me....=c

queenjean · Jan 10, 2008

Rallie, try here:

https://allnurses.com/forums/f57/

notsosupernurse · Jan 11, 2008

well, for me, i worked wayyyyyyyyyy to hard to let my lpn licenses go (hold them in two states as i do my rn licenses). i'm proud of my accomplishments and feel it would be a *waste* for me to let them (lpn licensures) go. i mean, it's not like i went from lpn/rn to do/md...& even if i did, i may still maintain the other licensure just because (if allowed).
that being said, i work under both licenses for a few reasons...mainly because i don't wish to go into another tax bracket by doing ot strictly as an rn. the other reason is that i still enjoy working ltc/assistant living/ambulatory from time-to-time & most facilities requiring agency nurses do not & will not pay rns agency salary for something that lpns are cable to handle.
lastly, i would like to add that i'm a she & not a he...lol! moe is an nickname given to me due to my maiden sir name.
cheers :cheers:,
moe

lol sorry for the he reference....!!!!!!!!!!:icon_roll

have an electrictronic beverage on me:cheers:

and i still think it is cool you maintained and work with both your licenses!

swee2000 · Jan 11, 2008

I just have a question (not starting an argument); why do you say 'nurse' and 'lpn"? Again, this is not to start a flame war with you or anyone, however I just want to state that the language has to change. RNs and LPNs are both nurses. I made this comment at one of the nurse practice meetings at our hospital. There are about 12 RNs and 4 LPNs that take part in this, and they constantly say "The nurse [meaning RN] and the LPN..." and it denotes that the word nurse only applies to RNs. I see this all the time in the policy and procedure manuals. One of the first things I told them is that this needs to be changed to state RN and LPN. If there are specifics that RNs are allowed to do that LPNs can't, it should be stated there.
LPNs working in my hospital in med-surg experience this often, and most of them are really offended. LPNs working in med-surg at my facility are primarily responsible for administering medications. In fact, they took them away from primary nursing, leaving that to RNs. The RNs will have 5 patients; which include medications, paperwork and doing the other skills that the LPNs are not doing at this time, and the LPNs just give meds. During the shift to shift report, when the supervisors call the head nurse, she will say "I have 4 nurses [RNs] and an LPN". Many times, they will just say that they have "x amount of nurses [RNs]" and do not even count the LPN as part of them.
Basically, I am saying that we ALL are nurses; different scopes of practice, yes...but we are in this thing together.:cheers:

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you......for posting these comments. I've been wanting to say something similar on here & for A LONG time. But I figured my posting would either get deleted or start World War 3.

One thing that really irritates me is when RNs refer to me as a "tech", either to the patient &/or other staff, and either verbally or in writing(for example, if the RN is the one to write our names on the dry erase board in a patient's room, and she puts my name next to the title "Tech" or "CNA", I will change it to "LPN" ). I am NOT a tech!!! Nor am I a CNA or a nursing assistant anymore. I am an LPN!! Grant it, I may still do the "CNA tasks", in addition to all the nursing responsibilities that are within my scope of practice. But I worked waaaaaaaay too hard, and fought through so much, just to get to this point & where I am today. Therefore, I won't let anyone take that away from me or make me "feel" or "look" like anything less than what I am....a nurse. And I will politely correct the RN's mistake, whether it be erasing "CNA" or "Tech" on the dry erase board and rewriting "LPN" next to my name, or gently saying something to the RN outside of the patient's presence.

I think somebody else mentioned this in a previous post, but here's another example of what some RNs(on my unit) do that also drives me crazy: When meeting a patient for the very first time, and ahead of the RN, I will introduce myself as "Hi, I'm X, and I'll be one of the nurses taking care of you today, along with Z(the RN)". While I'm still in this same patient's room, here will come Z, who proceeds to introduce him/her-self as "Hi, I'm Z and I'm going to be your nurse today". Now I'm sure most patients miss the irony to the different introductions; or maybe they caught it, yet could care less. I also know that most of the RNs who do this, don't mean anything personal or offensive by it. But sometimes it's hard to "bite one's tongue and move on" because I truly feel insulted by that RN for not referring to me as a "nurse" in front of the patient( although I've never let it interfere with my working relationship or getting the job at hand done).

collegemomrn · Jan 21, 2008

I am an RN. ADN on my way to BSN.:balloons:

Nurse4Life1213 · Jan 21, 2008

I've been an LPN since i was 18, (graduated from highschool program) any who, i work in a LTC facility with mostly all LPN's. New admits family members are the ones who most often ask LPN or RN. I tell them with pride that I'm an LPN and usually add in that im in my second year to become an RN (saves them from asking if i'm planning on going back...nurses always think ahead haha) :idea: . I also have had some ask me to write my name and title on a piece of paper, i encourage this in new admits and their families, i believe its one more way to help facilitate them smoothly to their new surroundings.

collegemomrn · Jan 21, 2008

I guess that I miunderstood the question. I have been asked frequently if I am an RN. In our CCU we are all RN's and that is what I tell my patients. I don't believe that a LPN can't work in the CCU setting but, in our facility they are limited in what they can do. No CVC IVs, no IV starts, certain IV peripheral meds, no vents, I could go on. They need a nurse backup for all of those things.:balloons:

MB37 · Jan 21, 2008

One thought, since so many people of the street don't have any idea what our alphabet soup means - tell your patients that you're a registered nurse, or a licensed professional/vocational nurse. Since I'm a student, I've had a lot of casual acquaintances come up to me and say things like, "Oh, you're going to nursing school? My sister's a nurse! She's an LPN, you know, the ones that prescribe medicines almost like a doctor." Well, no, your sister might be an NP, or she might be an LPN and you made the rest of that up. I've heard more comments along those lines than I can count.

Even if people know what some of the letters stand for, they still don't know what all the programs are. I was talking to a patient's caregiver at clinical the other day, and I always introduce myself as MB37, a student nurse. She asked where I went to school and a couple of questions about the program, which I told her was 15 months long. She said, "Oh, so you're going to be an LPN?" I said no, I'm actually getting my bachelor's in nursing. She said, "Oh, so you're already an RN then? And you're just going back?" I said no, and had to explain again that there are programs to make it a little quicker for people who have a BS in something else. She had some medical training - she was retired, but when she worked it was as some type of an aide. She still had no idea what I was talking about. I think that if we actually take a minute to explain who we are and what the difference is, some of them might eventually start to get it.

ohmeowzer RN, RN · Jan 21, 2008

i'm a RN :)

lorabel · Jan 21, 2008

TraumaRus, It may not be a negative thing..asking if you are an LPN or RN...Many patients iny my meager 4 months as an RN asked our names. We had badges with name and credentials..Frequently the family or the patient would send a thankyou card or gift basket thanking us for the good care received! Most of the time nurses were named and thanked. I think it is a good thing. On the flip side of the coin...it is sad to say but it seems today that patients and family have to be proactive in their care. I learned this the hard with my mom and dad. Long story short version; my mom had a hip replacement..she was nauseous after sx and unable to keep anything down. IV was d/cd 24 hours postop..per protocol........she couldnt go to PT without a barf bag. I was a nursing student at the time...I noticed she was getting dehydrated (skin turgor, sunken eyes, cracked lips) about 5 days post-op...I asked 3 different nurses to please get an order for an IV because my mom was getting dehydrated. I was told that she wasnt dehydrated, shes taking enouogh po. I said she throws it all up and has had nothing measurable po since sx. Nothing was done...2 days later they called a "condition c"...going down the tubes......to make it worse the very morning this happened, my mom asked her nurse for pain meds and was told she was a whiner! The same nurse left her unattended in the bathroom after my told her she felt like she was going to pass out!!!!! The nurse puts her back in bed, does NO assessment, even after my mom saying she didnt feel well and thought she would pass out.....an hour later my dad came and found her unresponsive and unable to even pick up her hand to use the call light! THATS when they called the condition c!!!!!!!! My dad ran out in the hall and yelled for help!!!!!!!!!! I filed a complaint with the hospital and went all the way to the top! they were not accurately charting I&Os....So..I learned that family has to be proactive...I still kick myself for not being more assertive...I was just a nursing astudent......they were nurses that dealt with postops every day!!!!! As I brought up to the DON........if they deal with this dail;y since its an ortho unit only...WHY did the nurses not recognize this as not normal...the nausea, pallor..throwing up that wasnt charted? I found small amount of blood on sheet from emesis!!!!!! So..my mom ended up in the ICU for 7 days, did ABGs and wouldnt tell me results; only that it is what they expected? oh..her body temp was 93, pulse was nonpalpable, BP VERY low....was caused by dehydration; she ended up with a paralytic ileus, then had coffee ground emesis from antibiotics causing GI problems.....so many things but ALL could have been prevented!!!!!!!!! The hospital has changed some policies since my complaint..they now must accurately chart I&O..every hour they must go in and chart, they now have a "condition H" which is for family only..if they feel they are not getting answers they need or if patient feels they are not getting the help they need....So maybe some of the patients or family members had a previous bad experience...or they want to know who to thank for the excellent care given?!! My money is on the latter!!!!!

lovnesg · Jan 21, 2008

I do have it happen all the time. I have been a nurse for over 22 years and don't understand this question. I get sick and tired of so many patients and families putting a wedge between nurses. We all have the same interest in common and that is to take care of our patients to the best of our ability. As NURSES, it is our responsibility to assure our patients and their families that we are all 'NURSES', but it seems that many RN's continue to keep LPN's in a different category. Its sad!!!!

collegemomrn · Jan 21, 2008

Most patients or lay people have no idea what all of the letters stand for. When they ask if we are a real nurse. They are looking for a short answer. Our hospital tried really hard to get the patients informed on who was caring for them by uniform color. Do they really think that they will remember that without a chart telling them who is who. I think we just need to answer the question and let them know that we are going to do everything to help them get better. :idea: