LPN's Being Left Go

[VentMedic]

Organizations "warehouse" RN's when their wages drop. Right now RN's are being forced to take cuts, work on call or part time, and the RN mills (many bankrolled by hospitals and some HMO's in the late Nineties to present) are still working in overdrive.

The "RN mills" still must meet the minimum national standard for testing which is not with the wide range of "hours" like EMS. The mail order programs like Excelsior are also very much under scrutiny and banished from many states since they have only 2 weeks or less of clinicals.

Fortunately, like nursing, EMS (or at least the NREMT) is getting the message and eliminating the Intermediate.

I also saw where a couple areas in Canada are rewriting their LPN programs to increase the education content to compliment the skills.

Right now very few professions, medical and nonmedical, are immune from pay cuts. You can not just state it is an RN thing. In northern CA, a dollar/hr off their hourly wage is still going to leave them making a very decent take home check.

 

[Outbac1]

Around here LPNs seem to be moving upward. Their education and skill set is now not much different than the old 2 yr RN diploma, so some LPNs have told me. It's been the best part of 20 yrs since you could take a 2 yr RN diploma here. It is all a 4yr BSN degree. In fact many of the 2yr RNs are upgrading to a BSN degree. Most of these nurses are in their late 30's / early 40's.

As to EMTs, we don't have them. Its been 9yrs since we have had any sort of EMT/P1 type courses. Our short course now is 10 months of full time school. Degrees in EMS aren't that far away here. They will be here sooner than we think.

 

[fortsmithman]

As to EMTs, we don't have them. Its been 9yrs since we have had any sort of EMT/P1 type courses. Our short course now is 10 months of full time school. Degrees in EMS aren't that far away here. They will be here sooner than we think.

Medicine Hat College and University of Toronto at Scarborough offer Bachelor degree programs in EMS. Medicine Hat College offers an ACP program and U of T offers a PCP program.