Licensed Practical or Vocational Nursing Programs
How to Pick the Right One Near Richmond Hill New York

A first step that you need to take after deciding to become a Licensed Practical Nurse is to find and enroll in the right LPN program near Richmond Hill NY that will help you enter the rewarding vocation of nursing. If you live in Texas or California, then you will be looking for a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) school instead. There is no distinction, apart from the names, between an LVN and an LPN. They both practice in health care facilities under the supervision of Registered Nurses (RN) or Doctors and perform identical job duties. However their duties do fluctuate depending on the state they practice in, which we will talk about in the following section. Many new students begin by looking for schools that are close to their homes and of those lean towards the one that is least expensive. Even though cost and location are important factors, they are not the only criteria that you should base your selection on. Such as do the schools offer job placement assistance and do they have high placement rates, which are both extremely important as well. There are various other questions that you should ask potential schools before enrolling in a LPN or LVN course that we will talk about later in this article. But to start with, let's look at the role of an LPN and what is involved in the education and licensing process.

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LPN and LVN Job Description

Licensed Practical Nurses have numerous functions that they carry out in the Richmond Hill NY health care facilities where they practice. As their titles signify, they are required to be licensed in all states, including New York. Although they may be responsible for supervising Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), they themselves normally work under the supervision of either an RN or a doctor. The health care facilities where they work are numerous and diverse, such as hospitals, medical clinics, schools, and long-term care facilities. Anyplace that you can encounter patients requiring medical assistance is their domain. Each state not only controls their licensing, but also what work activities an LPN can and can't perform. So based on the state, their routine work functions might include:

• • Measuring vital signs
  • Providing medications
  • Starting IV drips
  • Overseeing patients
  • Taking blood or urine samples
  • Taking care of patient records
  • Assisting physicians or RNs with procedures

In addition to their occupational duties being governed by each state, the medical facilities or other Richmond Hill NY healthcare providers where LPNs work can further limit their job duties within those parameters. In addition, they can work in numerous specialties of nursing, which include long-term care, critical care, oncology and cardiology.

LPN and LVN Certificates and Degrees

There are principally two academic credentials available that provide training to become an LPN near Richmond Hill NY. The one that can be concluded in the shortest time frame, usually about twelve months, is the certificate or diploma course. The second choice is to obtain a Practical Nursing Associate Degree. These LPN programs are more comprehensive in nature than the diploma alternative and usually require 2 years to finish. The benefit of Associate Degrees, besides supplying a higher credential and more extensive training, are that they provide more transferable credit toward a Bachelor's Degree in nursing. Regardless of the kind of credential you seek, it should be state approved and accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) or some other national accrediting organization. The NLNAC attests that the course of study effectively prepares students to become Practical Nurses, and that most graduates pass the 50 state required NCLEX-PN licensing exam.

LPN and LVN Online Programs

Enrolling in LPN or LVN programs online is becoming a more favored way to receive instruction and attain a nursing certificate or degree in Richmond Hill NY. Many schools will require attendance on campus for part of the training, and nearly all programs call for a certain number of clinical rotation hours carried out in a local healthcare facility. But since the rest of the training can be accessed online, this option may be a more convenient answer to finding the free time to attend college for many students. Pertaining to tuition, some online degree programs are less costly than other on campus alternatives. Even other expenses such as for commuting and study materials may be lessened, helping to make education more easily affordable. And many online programs are accredited by U.S. Department of Education recognized organizations. Therefore if your work and household obligations have left you with little time to pursue your academic goals, maybe an online LPN school will make it more convenient to fit a degree into your busy schedule.

What to Ask LPN and LVN Schools

Once you have decided on obtaining your LPN or LVN certificate or degree, and if you will attend classes on campus or online, you can utilize the following checklist to start narrowing down your choices. As you probably realize, there are many nursing schools and colleges near Richmond Hill NY as well as within New York 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 workable list. As we already mentioned, the location of the school along with the price of tuition are undoubtedly going to be the primary two points that you will take into consideration. But as we also emphasized, they should not be your only qualifiers. So prior to making your final decision, use the following questions to evaluate how your selection measures up to the field.

• Accreditation. It's a good idea to make sure that the certificate or degree program as well as the school are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency. In addition to helping confirm that you get an excellent education, it may assist in obtaining financial aid or student loans, which are often not available for non-accredited schools near Richmond Hill NY.
• Licensing Preparation. Licensing criteria for LPNs and LVNs differ 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. Some 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 attending not only delivers a top-notch education, but also preps you to satisfy the minimum licensing standards for New York or the state where you will be practicing.
• Reputation. Check online rating companies to see what the reviews are for all of the LPN or LVN schools you are looking into. Ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews too. Additionally, contact the New York school licensing authority to find out if there are any complaints or compliance issues. Finally, you can contact some local Richmond Hill NY 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 or LVN programs you are looking at what their graduation rates are as well as how long on average it takes students to finish 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 verify that the school has a good reputation within the Richmond Hill NY healthcare community, but that it also has the network of contacts to help students gain a position.
• Internship Programs. The most ideal way to acquire experience as a Licensed Practical Nurse is to work in a clinical setting. Virtually all nursing degree programs require a specific number of clinical hours be completed. Various states have minimum clinical hour requirements for licensing too. Check if the schools have a working relationship with nearby Richmond Hill NY community hospitals, clinics or labs and help with the placement of students in internships.

Learn More About Training to Be an LPN or LVN in Richmond Hill

Choose the Best Richmond Hill LPN or LVN Program

Selecting the ideal Licensed Practical Nurse school is perhaps the most important step to starting a new career in the health care industry. There are a number of aspects that you should take into account when picking a nursing school. These aspects will be prioritized differently depending on your existing career goals, lifestyle, and financial status. As we have emphasized within this post, it is important that you select an LPN college and a certificate or degree program that are each accredited and have exceptional reputations within the health care community. By using our checklist of qualifying questions, you will be able to produce a short list of schools to pick from so that you can make your ultimate selection. And with the right degree and training, combined with your hard work and ambition to succeed, you can become an LPN or LVN in Richmond Hill New York.

 

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