Who Wants to Remain a LPN?

flightnurse2b, LPN · May 27, 2008

You see that really is the difference between where you work. PNs work in ICU's, Cardiology Units, pretty much everywhere except NICU in my province.

wow, thats awesome! LPN jobs in acute care areas are few and far between and most of the nurses have been grandfathered in where ive worked. they were some of the very best nurses i have ever worked with. my boss actually let a few LPNs go because they refused to go back to school and she said they were "unsafe" to have in the ER due to the fact they could not peform a physical assmt or push an IV med. its amazing how america has made LPN's seen to be such a lowly position.... a few hospitals ive spoke with in this area said they'd hire me as a "nurse tech", and i would not function as a "professional nurse" if i were to choose to work in the ER, or any floor besides SNF, hospice, or rehab... its upsetting but it just makes it all the more worth it for me to complete the RN.

asoonernurse · May 27, 2008

I am graduating LPN school in a mere 10 days

:w00t:

asoonernurse · May 27, 2008

Well, CT. I think you pretty much summed up MY reasons fairly well.

At 45 years old (and WITHOUT current pre-reqs) I was pretty much in the same boat. Go BACK to CC for a year (maybe more?) then hope like hell I win the lottery! :chuckle

No, I also chose the private school route. All pre-reqs included, just sign here.

I signed up, gave them my first born child, and was sitting in class a month later. No stress, no hassles.

I hope to be able to do my step up and THEN my BSN by Distance Learning through one of the more reputable online schools.

I look forward to WORKING as a nurse on the floor while I move forward with my eduction.

I suppose if I were a 20 year old kid again, I might think about doing it all at once (a BSN program). But, unfortunately, I'm not!

Regards,

Michael

LPN_thts_M3 · May 27, 2008

I plan on going on to my RN only because I want to work in Labor and Delivery and you "have" to be a RN. That was my whole goal going into nursing. LPN's here seem to have a wide variety of options it just so happens that my option requires further education.

Fiona59 · May 27, 2008

wow, thats awesome! LPN jobs in acute care areas are few and far between and most of the nurses have been grandfathered in where ive worked. they were some of the very best nurses i have ever worked with. my boss actually let a few LPNs go because they refused to go back to school and she said they were "unsafe" to have in the ER due to the fact they could not peform a physical assmt or push an IV med. its amazing how america has made LPN's seen to be such a lowly position.... a few hospitals ive spoke with in this area said they'd hire me as a "nurse tech", and i would not function as a "professional nurse" if i were to choose to work in the ER, or any floor besides SNF, hospice, or rehab... its upsetting but it just makes it all the more worth it for me to complete the RN.

What do you mean you can't perform a physical assessment? That is part of our basic education. I perform my own admission, discharge, and routine shift assessments.

In my health authority IV push is restricted to RNs in the ER, ICU, and Dialysis. From what I've seen, by the time an IV push is need there are more staff around the patient than the LPN so it's not an issue. Floor RNs are not permitted to IV push because if the patient needs that kind of care they belong in ICU.

Reading here, I've also noticed a big difference in how pain is managed in our two patient populations. We seem to use PCAs and epidural relief less often than the States.

And before anyone asks, I work under my licence, have my own insurance, report directly to the Charge Nurse (just as the RNs do). Currently an RN is responsible for the PICC changes and meds but that is because until recently my hospital had a PICC team who travelled around the hospital and did all the care. We've been informed by year end that we (PNs) will be doing our own. We usually have fewer than 10% of our patients with a PICC, so one RN will do them all.

So basically in my province, we have become the two year nurse, just without the title. Our education is two years or four semesters back to back depending on which school you go to. An the possibility of going onto a BScN is there BUT we have to jump through hoops ringed with fire to get there and go full time. Many PNs feel that it has been done that way for a couple of reasons: keep experienced nurses in the hospital system, and the RN union & association are very vocal and protective of their profession.

The shame is the vast majority of patients are cared for by LPNs and the public just don't know it, they can't be bothered to read the ID tags. We immunize their families, apply & remove their casts, assist in their surgeries, perform their dialysis treatments, admit, asses & educate our new mothers and babes, look after their elders in LTC, work in Psych hospitals and clinics.

If we were as uneducated as many of the RNs on this board would have the world believe, we'd be sued all over the place. As it stands I've seen more RNs investigated than LPNs for unsafe/inadequate care.

The only shame an LPN should have is shame that their professional body isn't promoting them to the public.

tothepointeLVN, LVN · May 27, 2008

Fiona it seems like Canada is a better place to be as a PN than here. Again I say seems so nobody jump on me for that. I would LOVE to be proved wrong though

akanini, MSN, RN · May 27, 2008

Well, to be the sole dissenter in the group so far, I am one of those who sees my LVN license as a mere stepping stone to my RN, then BSN.
Do I see LVNs as a lower life form? Absolutely not.
However, where I live, LVNs are strictly limited in opportunity (and it's going to get worse, not better).
Nearly ALL of the hospitals in my area have eliminated LVNs from acute care status, thereby banishing LVNs to nursing homes, doctor's offices and corner med clinics.
When I began this trip, I knew I wanted to be in trauma care (of one sort or another.) This means RN, and RN only.
I wish it were different, but it's not. I don't want to spend my career in LTC, nor do I want to be stuck in a doctor's office or med clinic.
Truthfully? I have no choice. That has been taken away from me. I HAVE to go further.
And with RNs pushing from one end, and CMAs from the other, I see LVNs as a dying breed.
Sorry to be so blunt, but there you have it.
Best regards,
Michael

You took the words right out of my mouth!

pagandeva2000, LPN · May 27, 2008

Whether you're an LPN or RN, they both involve a lot of responsibility. I'm a LPN and have worked LTC and at a clinic. The policies and demands put on you are all the same. I'm thinking of going back and getting my RN, but I wonder will it be the same BS with a wider scope of practice or does it really change the way you get to do nursing? By this I mean if I become a RN do I all of a sudden get to give quality care or is it just the same as it is now with a wider scope. Sorry if I sound a little pessimistic but I've been out of school appx. 18 months and nursing in general is not what I thought it would be. Paperwork, politics and coorporate greed should be the definition of nursing nowadays. Around here LPN's can't work in hospitals, but can pretty much everywhere else, but by reading alot of these forums it doesn't sound like hospitals are the miraculous (sp) improvement of quality care and appropriate number of patients per nurse. I hope I either find my niche soon or working as a garbage man (no offense to garbage men, just minimal people/political interaction) is looking pretty good. Don't get me wrong I love taking care of my residents, but my heart bleeds for the nurse/patient ratio and the poor quality of care allowed due to this poor staffing. Enough of my vent. Thanks for reading.

The things mentioned by kstec are the reasons why I prefer to remain an LPN. I have respect for those that choose to continue on for their RN, however, I have worked in or around nursing in other positions in the past...CNA, Phlebotomist, Patient Care Associate, Medical Assistant, etc... and from what I witnessed, it is just that, a wider scope of practice, even more responsibility and even less control over it. I also do not see how obtaining a higher license will really improve on the quality care that I try to give, because in my case, I would be so distracted with the BS that I think I would be doing myself, the patients and the facility a disservice by taking on more than I can actually handle. And, after becoming a nurse, I can echo each and every thing that kstec has stated. I was not as surprized, really, but being a part of it rather than on the outskirts made more of an impact on my decision to remain as I am.

missjennmb · May 28, 2008

I've always wanted to get a bachelors degree, all my life. I made some mistakes and bad choices early on and was not able to. But now, seeing how many medical establishments are paying for people's education to that end, I see a lifelong dream that had become a "pipe dream" start to seem a possibility again. Its hard to explain, but its just one of those things that I've tried hard for my whole life and for one reason or another been unable to accomplish.

That being said, I'd probably go on to be an RN anyways, just because of the job opportunities. I would like, ideally, to work in a hospital and get a good year or two in med/surg and then move to a specialty and stay there working nights until my kids are older (so I can be available days if necessary) Plus, the money is better, and there is a lot more room for movement to non-floor positions also.

I expect that eventually I am going to get burnt out being a floor nurse. Maybe not, but I intend to put myself in a position, educationally, where I can move to a non-bedside position, if I feel like I just am not happy with my job anymore.

CLUVRN, MSN, RN · May 28, 2008

I guess the concensus is that RN is definitely the way to go, with LPN just being the stepping stone. Your responses give me some food for thought. Thanks you guys!

amjowens · May 28, 2008

I'm surprised at how challenging LPN school is. I respect LPNs, and now realize the amount of knowledge LPNs have now that I'm in school.

Unfortunately, LPNs aren't given the opportunity OR respect they deserve in my area. It's sad, unfair, and wrong. But, since LPNs are intelligent and have transition programs open to them to become RNs, I think it serves those LPNs who can become RNs (those with time, etc.) to do so. It's not about a different "level", it's just the way it's set up in the system. It's not right, and it just is as it is, but the RN has more opportunity and is better compensated than LPNs. I mean, even RN students completely change their tone when they hear I'm in LPN school and not RN school. And, if RNs don't even understand the skills LPNs have, I'm afraid to find what patients/families/physicians/PTs, etc. misunderstand the LPN role to be.

Hopefully knowledge about LPNs will increase, but with hospitals in my area refusing to hire LPNs, and standards being set in other settings that exclude LPNs and hire only RNs, I can't see things going in any direction but down in the near future.

eldragon · May 28, 2008

I'm an LPN, and doubt I'll go on to become an RN.

Why?

Because I'm only in nursing for the patients. I detest a lot of things about nursing, but the patients make it worth it.

(I work in skilled nursing.)

Why would I want to do more paperwork? Or why would I want to be the one calling the doctor everyday? Or dealing with families all the time? I like being that center stone between the CNA's and the RN's.

As far as intelligence goes, I know I'm smarter than the three RN's I work with. For heaven's sake, just today I asked an RN to check my calculations on an elixir dose of heart medication, because even though I was 99.9% that I had it right, I would rather have been proven wrong by the RN then to have given the patient the wrong dose. Well, the RN couldn't figure out the calculation. She couldn't do it! She called the pharmacy and verified that I had the right dose.

Can you imagine?

(Later on she reprimanded me in front of about 25 patients, on something pathetic. Obviously she felt belittled by not being able to do something I could - but hey...I just wanted to double check the dose.)

My self-esteem is intact. I know why I'm in nursing. I have nothing to prove. RN's can keep the bigger paycheck and all that responsibility and I'll stay an LPN and be able to sleep nights.