How To Become an LPN Grants Pass OR

How to Enroll In the Right LPN College near Grants Pass Oregon

Grants Pass OR LPN pediatric nurse holding infant There are generally two academic credentials offered that provide education to become an LPN near Grants Pass OR. The one that can be completed in the shortest time frame, commonly about 1 year, is the certificate or diploma course. The 2nd option is to earn a Practical Nursing Associate Degree. These LPN programs are more comprehensive in nature than the diploma option and typically require 2 years to finish. The advantage of Associate Degrees, aside from providing a higher credential and more comprehensive instruction, are that they provide more transferable credit toward a Bachelor’s Degree in nursing. Regardless of the kind of credential you pursue, it should be state approved and accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) or another national accrediting organization. The NLNAC guarantees that the course of study adequately prepares students to become Practical Nurses, and that the majority of graduates pass the 50 state required NCLEX-PN licensing exam.

What is an LPN?

Grants Pass OR Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Licensed Practical Nurses have many functions that they complete in the Grants Pass OR healthcare facilities where they are employed. As their titles imply, they are mandated to be licensed in all states, including Oregon. Although they may be responsible for monitoring Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), they themselves usually work under the oversight of either an RN or a doctor. The medical care facilities where they work are numerous and assorted, for instance hospitals, medical clinics, schools, and long-term care facilities. Virtually any place that you can find patients seeking medical assistance is their domain. Every state not only oversees their licensing, but also what work activities an LPN can and can’t perform. So based on the state, their day-to-day work activities can include:

Measuring vital signs
Giving medications
Initiating IV drips
Observing patients
Collecting blood or urine samples
Keeping patient records
Supporting doctors or Registered nurses with procedures

In addition to their job responsibilities being mandated by each state, the health facilities or other Grants Pass OR healthcare providers where LPNs work can further limit their job roles within those parameters. Additionally, they can work in different specialties of nursing, including long-term care, critical care, oncology and cardiology.

LPN Programs Online

female student attending LPN school online in Grants Pass OR Enrolling in LPN schools online is emerging as a more in demand way to obtain training and acquire a nursing certificate or degree in Grants Pass OR. Some schools will require attending on campus for a component of the training, and virtually all programs call for a specified number of clinical rotation hours carried out in a local healthcare center. But since the remainder of the training may be accessed online, this method may be a more practical approach to finding the time to attend college for many students. Pertaining to tuition, a number of online degree programs are less costly than other on campus choices. Even supplemental expenses such as for commuting and study materials may be lessened, helping to make education more economical. And numerous online programs are accredited by U.S. Department of Education recognized organizations. Therefore if your work and household responsibilities have left you with limited time to pursue your academic goals, maybe an online LPN program will make it more convenient to fit a degree into your busy schedule.

LPN Salary

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) was $45,030 in May 2017. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $32,970, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $61,030. Most licensed practical nurses near Grants Pass OR work full time, although about 1 in 5 worked part time in 2016. Many work nights, weekends, and holidays, because medical care takes place at all hours. They may be required to work shifts of longer than 8 hours. Employment of LPNs is projected to grow 12 percent from 2016 to 2026. Job prospects should be favorable for LPNs who are willing to work in rural and medically under served areas.

Questions to Ask LPN Schools

Questions to ask Grants Pass OR LPN programs Once you have decided on obtaining your LPN certificate, and if you will attend classes on campus or on the internet, you can utilize the following checklist to start narrowing down your options. As you probably are aware, there are many nursing schools and colleges near Grants Pass OR as well as within Oregon and throughout the United States. So it is important to lower the number of schools to select from to ensure that you will have a manageable list. As we earlier pointed out, the site of the school as well as the price of tuition are probably going to be the first two things that you will consider. But as we also emphasized, they should not be your only qualifiers. So prior to making your final choice, use the following questions to see how your pick measures up to the other schools.

Accreditation. It’s a good idea to make sure that the certificate program along with the school are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency. Aside from helping make sure that you get a premium education, it may assist in securing financial aid or student loans, which are frequently not offered for non-accredited schools near Grants Pass OR.
Licensing Preparation. Licensing criteria for LPNs vary from state to state. In all states, a passing score is required on the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-PN) along with graduation from an accredited school. Certain states require a specific number of clinical hours be performed, as well as the passing of additional tests. It’s important that the school you are enrolled in not only delivers an outstanding education, but also preps you to meet the minimum licensing requirements for Oregon or the state where you will be working.
Reputation. Look at internet rating companies to see what the evaluations are for all of the LPN schools you are looking into. Ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews as well. In addition, contact the Oregon school licensing authority to check out if there are any complaints or compliance issues. Finally, you can speak with some nearby Grants Pass OR healthcare organizations you’re interested in working for after graduation and ask what their assessments are of the schools as well.
Graduation and Job Placement Rates. Find out from the LPN programs you are considering what their graduation rates are as well as how long on average it takes students to complete their programs. A low graduation rate may be an indication that students were unhappy with the program and dropped out. It’s also important that the schools have high job placement rates. A high rate will not only substantiate that the school has a good reputation within the Grants Pass OR medical community, but that it also has the network of relationships to help students obtain a position.
Internship Programs. The most ideal way to get experience as a Licensed Practical Nurse is to work in a clinical setting. Essentially all nursing degree programs require a specified number of clinical hours be completed. A number of states have minimum clinical hour prerequisites for licensing too. Find out if the schools have associations with nearby Grants Pass OR community hospitals, clinics or labs and help with the placing of students in internships.

Enrolling in an LPN Program near Grants Pass OR?

If you are considering enrolling in and attending an LPN school near Grants Pass OR, you may find the following information both interesting and useful when making your final decision.

Grants Pass, Oregon

Grants Pass is a city in, and the county seat of, Josephine County, Oregon, United States.[6] The city is located on Interstate 5, northwest of Medford. Attractions include the Rogue River, famous for its rafting, and the nearby Oregon Caves National Monument located 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of the city. Grants Pass is 256 mi (412 km) south of Portland, the largest city in Oregon. The population was 34,533 at the 2010 census.[7]

Early Hudson's Bay Company hunters and trappers, following the Siskiyou Trail, passed through the site beginning in the 1820s. In the late 1840s, settlers (mostly American) following the Applegate Trail began traveling through the area on their way to the Willamette Valley. The city states[8] that the name was selected to honor General Ulysses S. Grant's success at Vicksburg. The Grants Pass post office was established on March 22, 1865.[9] The city of Grants Pass was incorporated in 1887.[10]

The Oregon–Utah Sugar Company, financed by Charles W. Nibley, was created, leading to a sugar beet factory being built in Grants Pass in 1916.[11] Before the factory opened, Oregon-Utah Sugar was merged into the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company.[11] Due to labor shortages and low acreage planted in sugar beets, the processing machinery was moved to Toppenish, Washington, in 1918 or 1919.[11]

Choose the Right LPN School near Grants Pass OR

Grants Pass OR LPN geriatric nurse with patient Picking the right Licensed Practical Nurse school is potentially the most important first step to launching a new career in the medical care field. There are many factors that you should think about when deciding on a nursing school. These aspects will be prioritized differently depending on your current career objectives, lifestyle, and economic situation. As we have emphasized in this post, it is critical that you choose an LPN school and a certificate or degree program that are each accredited and have exceptional reputations within the health care community. You originally decided to visit this website because of an interest in How To Become an LPN. However, by using our checklist of qualifying questions, you will be able to produce a shortlist of schools to select from so that you can make your ultimate selection. And with the right degree and training, combined with your hard work and desire to succeed, you can become an LPN in Grants Pass OR.