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This trendy Pendant is crafted from Solid Sterling Silver and Oxidized to Highlight details. A cool, easy on the pocket gift for yourself, family and friends. It comes with a thin (.8mm) box chain…. More >>

Sterling Silver Licensed Practical Nurse Insignia Pendant, 1 1/8 in. tall

Is the move from LPN to RN a feasible career direction for you to take? Yes. There is a growing scarcity of registered nurses. One that a World Health Report- 2003 (WHO) acknowledged: “The most critical issue facing health care systems is the shortage of people who make them work”.

In the USA today, statistics show that there is a population on ratio of 773 nurses for around 100,000 patients (The Global Nursing Review Initiative-2005).

Clearly, there is a wealth of job opportunities for an LPN looking for career advancement as an RN in the health care industry. As an RN, you will gain better autonomy. You will also be in the best position to assume a leadership role and substantially increase their ability to earn.

Is there one particular LPN to RN bridge online nursing degree program that you should be looking to join? No – the one that works is a program you have designed for yourself.

As an active LPN, you will be juggling a fulltime job while studying. The first step then is to evaluate your personal circumstances and your career goals.

Ask yourself these questions:

How will you be able to devote sufficient time to learning, while functioning at work and participating in your family’s lives? Can you rely on your family’s support to take on or rotate some of these domestic tasks with you?

Second step – inform the human resources department about your career plans. Their assistance will help you several ways:

Rescheduling work shifts.

Recommendations and guidance on hospital supported programs, as many hospitals offer tuition reimbursements.

Assist you in securing a position in your workplace, for your clinical learning experiences. This is a requirement of both online and offline nursing programs.

Third step – do an engine search for the different schools. Check out their programs. Submit your accomplishments to the accredited schools and then compare which among these will give you the most credits to becoming an RN. Most virtual schools give 30 credits to licensed practical nurses.

Last step – Once you have selected the program to enroll in, use the school’s resources. Most schools will assign you a guidance counselor to assist you with the application process, identify financial aid resources, and help you create a schedule that suits your work and personal schedules. This will help you on your path to bridge the LPN to RN career path.

LPN stands for “licensed practical nurse”. This type of nurse usually works under the supervision of a registered nurse and can be responsible for a variety of caretaking tasks, including patient feeding, medical record updating, patient call answering, and vital sign monitoring. In some states, an LPN is allowed to administer intravenous medication as well. In California and Texas, an LPN is referred to as an LVN (licensed vocational nurse). On the nursing hierarchy, an LPN takes on more responsibility than a certified nurse assistant, but not quite as much as an RN.

Becoming an LPN

In order to become an LPN, one must hold his/her high school diploma or equivalent and then complete a two-year practical nursing program. Upon course completion, a candidate must pass the NCLEX-PN to become officially licensed as an LPN. LPNs can expect to earn approximately $16 per hour, which is the national average.

Comparing Online LPN Programs

There are many colleges that offer LPN training online, so that anyone can learn from home in his/her spare time without having to quit his/her job. Some things to consider when looking for an online LPN program include time flexibility, cost, prerequisites, and professor availability.

Ask yourself first how much spare time you have to study in an online LPN program. You should be able to complete your training online without having to sacrifice your day job. Maybe you also have family to consider. Additionally, you should be sure to look at cost to make sure that enrolling isn’t going to put a huge dent in your budget.

Also be sure to consider any prerequisites that a program may have. Most online LPN programs will require nothing more than a high school diploma, but it never hurts to double check this. Also consider your computer system requirements as well. Make sure you have a reliable Internet connection and a sturdy Word processing program and you should be good to go.

Finally, it is usually helpful if you can get in touch with professors during the course of a class term. Some programs allow for more communication than others, so you will definitely want to consider this factor as well.

Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) are supposed to care for the sick, disabled, injured, and convalescent under the direction of a physician or registered nurse. Basic bedside care like monitoring temperature, measuring blood pressure, pulse and respiration are part of a LPNs job. An LPN also prepares and gives injections and enemas, applies dressings, monitors catheters, treats bedsores and gives alcoholic massages and rubs. Samples for testing are collected by the LPN. They also perform routine laboratory tests.

Feeding the patients and keeping a record of the regular intake and output by a patient is also a part of a LPN’s job. In order to keep a patient comfortable and hygienic LPNs also bathe and dress up a patient to keep up personal hygiene. In some states, LPNs are allowed to administer medicines prescribed by the physician or start intravenous fluids. Some LPNs also help in the delivery process and also provide care for as well as feed an infant. With experience a LPN may get the opportunity to supervise nursing aides and assistants.

Apart from providing basic bedside care, LPNs working in nursing care facilities also help to evaluate needs of a resident, develop plans for care of a resident, and supervise the nursing aides and care being provided by them. LPNs who work in clinics and offices of doctors also perform clerical duties like documenting appointments and maintaining records. LPNs working in private home may teach the family members simple tasks of nursing or how to prepare a meal.

All those who aspire to be a LPN are required to complete a practical nursing program approved by the state and then pass a licensing examination known as NCLEX-PN. Usually a high school diploma is mandatory at entry. However, there are a few programs that accept a candidate without a diploma as well. Also there are a few programs that are designed as a part of high school curriculum.

Most of the programs provided for Practical nursing last for around a year and are inclusive of classroom study and clinical practice (patient care). Basic concepts of nursing and subjects related to patient care such as physiology, anatomy, medical-surgical nursing, obstetrics, pediatrics, psychiatric nursing, nutrition, administration of drugs and first aid are covered during classroom study. Clinical practice is usually provided in a hospital or in similar settings.

In places of employment like nursing homes a LPN can advance to become responsible to oversee the work of nursing aides and other LPNs. LPNs can choose to become registered nurses by attending LPN-to-RN training programs. A LPN is required to have a caring and sympathetic attitude. Emotional stability is also a pre-requisite for a LPN, as she might have to work with irate, agitated, uncooperative, and irrational patients, which can be stressful. Keen observation, good communication skills and decision-making ability are also desired in a LPN. When in a health care team, a LPN should have the ability to follow orders and work while being closely supervised.

This is perhaps due to their scope of practice is less inclusive than that of Registered Nurses. By 1994, LPNs earned over $14 per hour on average. There was a short decline in wages of not only LPNs but for RN’s as well during the years between 1994 and 1998.(1) In the year 2001 LPNs were making between $17.78 and $21.15. In 2007, a graduate RN who had passed their state boards made approximately $22.50 per hour. Licensed practical nurses held about 749,000 jobs in 2006. About 26 percent of LPNs worked in hospitals, 26 percent in nursing care facilities, and another 12 percent in offices of physicians. Others worked for home health care services; employment services; residential care facilities; community care facilities for the elderly; outpatient care centers; and Federal, State, and local government agencies. About 19 percent worked part time. (2)

The scope of practice for LPNs vary from state to state as mandated by the State Board of Nursing. In general, the LPN is able to feed and bathe the patient, empty Foleys, J-pegs, colostomy bags, take a patient’s blood pressure, temperature (orally or rectally), exercise patient via assisting patient with walking, pass medications, change dressings of 2 day post- operative wounds as well as dress bedsores at stage II decubitus ulcer, report patient changes to the nurse, transport patient, give some injections (though not I.V.Push), hang IV bags, give massages and administer enemas.

LPNs can monitor patients for untoward reactions to medications or treatments and report findings to the RN. The RN is then responsible for follow up and to re-assessing the patient. The LPN works under the guidance and supervision of the RN. The RN’s license is jeopardized if the LPN does more than their job description if given instructions to do so by the RN. The LPN can help with regard to patient teaching, such as dietary suggestions for diabetics, and importance of tight glycemic control.

In most cases LPNs find employment in nursing homes, medical clinics, doctors offices and hospitals.

LPNs are required to pass a state licensing exam (NCLEX-PM) upon graduation from Licensed Practical Nursing Program.(2) A high school diploma as well as a nursing entrance test is required to gain admittance into the program. In 2006 there were over 1,500 State-approved LPN training programs in the U.S. In times past nursing programs were offered directly through hospitals. This type of practice has been replaced by individual nursing schools. LPN curriculum requires that the student review, learn, be tested upon and apply critical thinking in an actual heath care settings. Courses include anatomy and physiology, medication calculation, pediatric nursing, maternity nursing, medical surgical nursing, nutrition, psychiatric nursing and CPR.

Further education is encouraged for graduate LPNs/LVNs. Hospitals, nursing homes and sometimes medical clinics will often pay for furthering the education of an LPN/LVN to becoming an RN. In many cases, it is much easier for an LPN/LVN to obtain their Registered Nursing Degree. This is in part due to their prior patient care experience and the fact that many Registered Nursing Programs require that LPNs/LVNs attend a one year program to complete their R.N. Degree. This is the road that many LPN/LVNs take. They get their LVN/LPN and then go for their RN Degree while they are already working in the field.