So when are you going to become a “real” nurse??
Whoa buddy…..each time I hear this statement, it raises my cackles, as I'm sure it does many professional Licensed Practical Nurses. It's not only an insult, but it's degrading! I feel the need to defend myself, and my profession, however it's never the right time or place to do so, and I feel as if my defenses would fall on deaf ears anyhow. People are entitled to their opinion, however I would like to clarify, for both colleagues and the public, what my chosen profession is all about, and the reasons I chose to become an LPN, and why now, at this time of my life, I choose to continue this career path without advancement.
Many of us choose our career at a very young age, or have some vague idea of what it is we would like to do. Some of us take a bit longer, weighing the advantages and disadvantages of various career paths. For me, it was a little more cut and dry….I was going to be a nurse. I was going to help people, and there was very little anyone could have done to change that decision.
By the time I was a senior in high school, the path had already been chosen, the wheels in motion, and I was enrolled in a high school based vocational education program which would allow me to become an LPN after completion of the class, obtaining my diploma, and passing the state licensure examination. For those of you who are not aware, the LPN course in most states is one year, and you learn the basics of nursing….the real education starts there, and continues with experience! There is no way that all there is to know about nursing can be taught in one, two , or five years in a classroom. The same is true about RN's….however it takes two years of community college to obtain an Associate's degree as an RN.
I'm sorry folks, if this statement surprises you, but I AM a real nurse. There is not a specific place on my nursing license that demonstrates that I am not a “real” nurse. The nurse practice act regulates that I must practice nursing under supervision of an RN or an MD. That does not mean that I don't have the assessment skills or the expertise to perform nursing duties. In most places, I am not allowed to start an IV or administer IV medication, however I can become IV certified and perform these skills with some limits. In fact, in most nursing homes and clinics, there is very little that a staff RN does that I do not do, with the exception of an occasional IV.
Why don't I want to be an RN? I never said I didn't want to be one, or that I have anything against them, with the exception of asking me when I'm going to become a “real” nurse. I did further studies in preparation of entering the RN program, however after 27 years of nursing, and semi-retirement approaching, I feel as if the cost vs. length of time left working full time would not be worth it, nor would the time, or the stress. Did I mention the drop in pay?? I am at the top of my pay scale, which is seriously much higher than a starting wage for an RN, and most places will not honor the time one has been in the field, doing the same type of work and using the very same skills, to give an LPN that obtains an RN degree fair wage.
No, I refuse to return to school to take a pay cut. By the time I catch up with the wage I now earn, it will be time to retire and winter in a sunny vacation spot.
I hope this will clear up the “real nurse” debate…I chose this profession, and you chose yours. If we all work together and provide excellent nursing care, hopefully you can learn to respect me. I always encourage the young to attend college and obtain their RN when they tell me they would like to be a nurse, because it opens up other opportunities that in the future an LPN won't be able to take advantage of. I have had many unique opportunities as an LPN that many have not, because they limited themselves. I learned and absorbed everything I could, and after 27 years, I still know I haven't learned it all, and I don't know it all.
When I no longer learn something every day, when I think I know everything, it will be time for me to leave my chosen profession, a “real” nurse. Until then, please treat me with the respect I deserve, and leave the degrading comments at home.
