Where can you work with a LPN?

KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN · Jun 5, 2012

Yes, a lot of doctor's offices hire LPN's to work in their offices. I think their job duties include: taking vital signs, rooming patients, assisting with procedures, and a couple of things I can't recall right now lol. Other places where LPN's are utilized include: long term care facilities, assisted living facilities, home health, detention centers,dialysis facilities, clinics, and in some areas (but usually very limited) hospitals.

bigtim · Jun 6, 2012

I will be honest, outpatient clinics and general doctors office are cutting down. The one I used to work for had 10 employees working...12 years later down to 2.

The best place an LVN will get a job: Long Term Care.

Pipe Dream job for an LVN: Hospital

prettymica, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN, APRN, NP · Jun 6, 2012

Yes you can. But, lots of doctor's offices are also using MAs. I was trained by an MA when I was in LPN school back in 08. With all the medicare, medicaid and other cuts. Doctors want the to pay the least to support staff and keep money in their pocket. Mostly LPN are in LTC, home health, correctical facility and ALFs. If thats what you want, put it on your vision board and manifest :)!

Fiona59 · Jun 6, 2012

I will be honest, outpatient clinics and general doctors office are cutting down. The one I used to work for had 10 employees working...12 years later down to 2.
The best place an LVN will get a job: Long Term Care.
Pipe Dream job for an LVN: Hospital

Why is it a pipe dream? You are only speaking for your region.

I've worked in acute care for the better part of the last decade and the roles of LPNs in my area are constantly expanding.

Ashley94 · Jun 7, 2012

Is it possible to work at the hospital as a LPN? what would they do?

KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN · Jun 7, 2012

Is it possible to work at the hospital as a LPN? what would they do?

The hospitals in my area that still hire LPNs usually employ them on their sub-acute rehab floors. They have their own patient load, perform assessments(not initial),dressing changes & pass their meds, and other various tasks that are within their scope of practice. The charge nurse on those floors is an RN.

Fiona59 · Jun 7, 2012

I work surgery. So all post-op care. Medicine floors, post-partum, emergency, dialysis, OR Tech certified LPNs, Dialysis certified LPNs, Ortho specialist LPNs, Bariatric counselling, IVF clinic, Pallative, I think I've covered all the areas in my hospital.

minnymi · Jun 7, 2012

it's different if you've already worked there for a decade.

when the facilities in my area stopped hiring LPNs they didn't get rid of the ones they already had, but they didn't take any new ones.

to the OP: it's not only "possible" for you to work in a doctor's office, but it's very likely that you can work in a doctor's office. to be blunt: doctors will hire you because they can pay LPNs less and the things that have to be done in a doctor's office don't typically require a RN to do them whereas hospitals have a list of tasks only RNs can perform.

i've known LPNs who worked in the hospital for a long time and were great nurses. my favorite nurses at my first job as a student were two LPNs. that didn't change the fact that a RN had to go behind them and assess their patients or go push a med for them. i always thought it was so funny when one of the LPNs on the floor who had been a nurse for 10 years had to go get a new RN who had been working for 2 weeks to "check her work."

in reality what was happening a lot is that the RN didn't have time and there was no "time to make" to go and re-assess the LPNs patients before signing off that they had....so they were just signing that they had without actually doing it. i don't work with LPNs now and i wasn't licensed at that time, but the vibe that i picked up from the RNs at the time was, "what's the point in having someone do a job that i have to go right behind them and re-do" of course, they could just trust that the LPN did it and sign off, but who wants to risk their license doing that? i assume the hospitals around here ended up agreeing because for some reason (if it wasn't that) they stopped hiring LPNs.

Fiona59 · Jun 8, 2012

it's different if you've already worked there for a decade.
when the facilities in my area stopped hiring LPNs they didn't get rid of the ones they already had, but they didn't take any new ones.
to the OP: it's not only "possible" for you to work in a doctor's office, but it's very likely that you can work in a doctor's office. to be blunt: doctors will hire you because they can pay LPNs less and the things that have to be done in a doctor's office don't typically require a RN to do them whereas hospitals have a list of tasks only RNs can perform.
i've known LPNs who worked in the hospital for a long time and were great nurses. my favorite nurses at my first job as a student were two LPNs. that didn't change the fact that a RN had to go behind them and assess their patients or go push a med for them. i always thought it was so funny when one of the LPNs on the floor who had been a nurse for 10 years had to go get a new RN who had been working for 2 weeks to "check her work."
in reality what was happening a lot is that the RN didn't have time and there was no "time to make" to go and re-assess the LPNs patients before signing off that they had....so they were just signing that they had without actually doing it. i don't work with LPNs now and i wasn't licensed at that time, but the vibe that i picked up from the RNs at the time was, "what's the point in having someone do a job that i have to go right behind them and re-do" of course, they could just trust that the LPN did it and sign off, but who wants to risk their license doing that? i assume the hospitals around here ended up agreeing because for some reason (if it wasn't that) they stopped hiring LPNs.

What a positve ray of sunshine.

My hospital hires new grad LPNs every graduating class

Your last paragraph is completely false. I practice under my own Liability Insurance. No RN is responsible for my work. The RNs and LPNs within my system both report to the Charge Nurse who is an RN.

I do my own initial assessments, pre/post op care, discharge teaching.

I understand that I work in an system that utlizes my to my full scope of practice, something that seems to be greatly lacking in yours.

Here, and LPN attends college for two years before writing their registration exam. An RN must hold a BScN.

So I guess many of your RNs just wouldn't be an RN here.

minnymi · Jun 8, 2012

i didn't say it was a positive ray of sunshine.

i was just stating facts.

the RNs had to (and still have to for the LPNs who were grandfathered in) sign off on the LPNs assessments, give certain medications to the LPNs patients, and unless the LPN had IV training...start their IVs. how is the last paragraph of my statement false when i said, "that was the vibe i picked up from the RNs"? that's an opinion so it can't be false. maybe that wasn't the reason that they stopped the hiring, but whatever the reason was, there was a lot of relief when it happened. i can't think of any other logical reason they would stop hiring someone they can pay less if they are able of doing the exact same job. why even hire RNs at all...

BrandonLPN, LPN · Jun 8, 2012

I'm not sure where Fiona59 is from (Canada maybe?) but in the VAST, VAST majority of hospitals across the US are not hiring LPNs anymore. All those I have seen have been "grandfathered" in because they were hired, like, 30 years ago when the hospital DID hire LPNs.

The LPN students in my class who wanted to work in the local, metropolitan hospital were all silly, silly people who didn't do their reseach before signing up for the PN program.

Before I went to school, I did extensive research as to who hired LPNs in my state (Michigan).

Only a couple tiny rural hospitals waaaay up north hired LPNs.

Doctors offices do indeed hire LPNs... but you will be paid relatively low wages. Like 13-14 dollars an hour as a new grad. If you want to make more substantial wages as a LPN you have to try LTC, Corrections, Home care. LTC LPNs make more than office nurses, which is only fair considering the work load and irregular hours. But if you really want regular hours and "quieter" environment, than maybe a lower pay is worth it?