  For the last couple of years, I've been volunteering at urlLink Allexperts.com in the area of nursing education. I get a lot of questions about school. Here's an example of one with my answer. I think a lot of people either have a very distorted view of nursing (it's not like General Hospital, folks) or they're just looking at all the headlines that say CRITICAL NURSE SHORTAGE PROJECTED TO CONTINUE and think about the dollars they might make as a nurse. Anyway, here you go: ...why do you recommend LPN vs. RN? I have always heard that LPN's (at least around here) do all the grunt work, and the RN's get to do fun stuff like push drugs and actually see more patients. In other words, I'm not really interested in changing diapers as much as working with trauma/emerging cases. Any suggestions on this area? Should I get an EMT cert first? And my answer: Dear ******* First of all you have to understand that basic nursing IS grunt work. Nursing, in its most basic essence, is about changing diapers. If you cannot or will not do these most essential functions, you can never be a nurse. As a coordinator (charge nurse) of a 30 bed telemetry unit, I can tell you that on an average night I will change two to three beds, and change a handful of diapers.
This is just part of nursing care, and with the shortage of nursing assistants it is falling back on the nurses to provide this basic care to their patients. In this area nursing students are now required to work as nursing assistants prior to nursing school. This is a fantastic idea and really gives you a hands on look at the core of nursing: brushing teeth, wiping bottoms, feeding, bathing, and so on.
Rules differ from place to place but as an LPN in North Carolina I hung blood, pushed narcotics into central lines, and had my hands on just as many patients as any RN anywhere, and more than quite a few. In my opinion, an LPN education is much more process-based, task-oriented and hands-on. If you want nursing, not theory, an LPN program is going to get you in and out and actually working in half the time of an associates degree, which is the minimum for an RN.
Additionally, in the area where I work, there are many more and many more varied job opportunities for LPNs versus RNs. To me, this gives the LPN greater job mobility and a greater level of control. Please also remember two things: one, you do not magically become a nurse the day your license shows up. Learning to be a competent nurse is a process that spans several years, typically two to three, and in that time you will be considered a 'new' nurse and not every job will be open to you at that point. Two, the desire to work in a particular area does not always coincide with the availability of jobs in a particular area. My first love has always been general medicine, infectious disease, and then substance abuse detox.
Currently, I work in Cardiac Medical Telemetry, which is a close cousin with a focus on the heart. You may very well have to take a job in an area very different from trauma or emergent care, depending on what's open and what the requirements are. Especially in areas of that nature, some previous floor experience might be preferred or required. I personally would not want to work in emergent care without a solid background in med surg. You might wish to get your EMT first.
I would also recommend that before you commit to any kind of nursing education, you visit with or talk to some nursing assistants or nurses currently practicing to see how things really are on the floor. I hope this has been helpful to you. Please don't hesitate to contact me again if you need anything else. Yours sincerely, Satyavati, RN urlLink ');"> postCount(' '); 
