LPN Programs

Survey proves that by the year 2020 the nursing shortage will increase more than 1.7 million. The US Department of Labor shows that registered nurses will be among the top professions in the USA by 2012. If you consider studying nursing then LPN program is the first step towards the profession.  It is not that the registered nurses have all the authority in the hospitals. Even the LPN programs help LPNs develop and manage nursing care plans, instruct patients and their families in proper care.

Employment of LPNs is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupation well beyond the year 2000. In the field of nursing there is no substitute for education and experience. The LPN program prepares graduates to assume careers as one the professional nurses. LPNs work under the direction of doctors and registered nurses in a variety of healthcare systems. The basic responsibility of the License Practical Nurse is basically patient’s care. Most people realize that an LPN is a living breathing individual with responsibilities.

The best part is becoming an LPN is never an end to the profession. One can always try the LPN to RN programs or just the RN program where they can go for further studies. If you are currently pursuing LPN programs you can side by side start a part time job or can also undergo night classes so that you can earn money as well. In order to become an LPN a nurse must take a one to two year vocational training program. Vocational colleges and some nursing schools offer LPN programs, along with practical experience to students. However it is a fact that LPNs cannot perform complex tasks like anesthesia induction and surgery, but they can be involved in many aspects of a patent care. If an LPN has undergone specialized training then it is good for them to find a better job.

Three nation’s largest nursing unions announced a merger to bring up unionization effort across the country. According to the chief of the union’s chief regional negotiator they have paid union boosters based in Dallas but now will add more. The three unions to merge are the United American Nurses, California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee and the Massachusetts Nurses Association.

They have an aggressive organizing program throughout the state of Texas. Nurses at Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center in Houston became the first in Texas to vote to unionize. The Houston vote is important to the Dallas area because it could indicate how similar union votes might end here.

Less than half of the 88,600 nursing graduates passed the Nurse Licensure Examinations. The Professional Regulatory Commission which released the results yesterday said 44.5 percent or 39,455 examinees passed the board exams given by the Board of Nursing. The top spot with a score of 89 percent went to Jovie Ann Alawas Decoyna of Baguio Central University.

The 2009 passing rate was slightly higher than the 43.1 percent. There were 72 nursing students who garnered the top 10 scores. Of the schools that had over 100 examinees, Xavier University had the highest passing rate at 99 percent. It was followed by Silliman University, Central Philippines University, St. Louis University and Southern Luzon Polytechnic College- Lucban.

According to a recent survey nine out of ten residents of nursing homes in Rhode Island are satisfied with the care patients receive. At nursing homes elsewhere that participated in the survey 87 percent of residents and 85 percent of family members had such high satisfaction.

The survey results have been compiled into a list rating each nursing home in Rhode Island in comparison with others within the state. Kathleen Heren of the Rhode Island Alliance for Better Long Term Care, an advocacy group said that she is skeptical of satisfaction surveys because the choice of respondents can bias the results.

Jerry Narace, Health Minister says that his ministry will be hiring 450 nurses from other countries to fill the vacancies. However all the disqualified nurses of the state want the government to give them a chance. Narace said the 2009 plans included the recruitment of 100 nurses from St. Vincent and another 350 nurses from sources outside our region.

A meeting was granted with Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Health and it was decided that the members of the nursing schools in Jamaica were coming in to audit all the local nursing schools as a result of the high failure rate. Narace added that once nursing students meet the objectives outlined in the regional course, they would graduate and join other nurses in what was considered the largest group of healthcare workers in the country.

For the last ten years the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has posted data online about nursing home health care, staffing levels and quality care. Similarly this year new ratings have been released for local nursing homes. They rate the centers with stars.

Lately they rated the Fraser Health Center on Hilton Head Island from four to five stars. The Preston Health Center and Broad Creek Care Center retained their five-star rating. Life Care Center of Hilton Head was still at one star rating. Whatever the ratings be yet the nursing shortage has not been covered up with any solutions.

Canada’s nursing shortage has reached to an extreme. The government, educational institutes and professional associations are throwing money to add solutions to this problem. According to Rachel Bard, CEO of the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) colleges and institutes has responded to the issue. The use of High-Fidelity Human Simulators in state-of-the-art simulation labs is one of a few innovative solutions designed to provide more nurses with the experience they need to get educated and help them to work.

Research suggests that 12,000 graduates per year are needed to address the projected nursing shortage. To increase that number the amount need to increase by 27 percent beyond the 2007 results. Pamela Adams, associate dean of Baccalaureate Nursing at BCIT says that the institute will be graduating 96 students twice a year from the new program.

Recently the New York State Department of Health released its latest report on the nursing homes of the area. The reports of some of these nursing homes are not good. The State Department of Health inspects these nursing homes every 6-9 months to find out how each one of them is performing.

Among the State’s list of poor performing nursing homes are Betsy Ross Nursing Facility, Heritage Health Care Centre and the Loretto Utica Centre. These nursing homes are not good when compared to state averages. On a good note are The Sunset Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Boonville and the Masonic Care Community in Utica which had fewer violations.

A Doctorate in Nursing Practice (DNP) is being offered by Florida State University College of Nursing which begins this fall. The program will be held at the FSU-Panama City campus on Wednesday, Feb 4. According to a news release, this course will prepare the highly qualifies nurse experts for advanced positions as practitioners and administrative leaders in health care industry.

The course especially encourages the nurses holding bachelors or master’s degree. The information sessions will update them about new degree program opportunities, part-time and full-time programs of study and specialty focus in Family Nursing or Health Systems Leadership. It would also provide a review of the student’s transcripts.