Patient care is a top priority throughout the healthcare community, and over 12,000 healthcare professionals took a stand for passion for patients and the nursing profession. On June 10, 2010, Minnesota nurses with the National Nurses Union walked off the job for a one-day strike to protest patient issues, staffing concerns and better pay.

 

Although Minnesota Nurses Association and 14 local hospitals have yet to agree on the union’s protests at the time this article was written, the following video shows the dedication, compassion and concern these “patient advocates,” as one nurse calls them, have for their patients.

 

Many of these patient advocates are asking hospitals to maintain a better nurse-to-patient ratio. For example, nurses request 1 Registered Nurse to 4 patients in medical and surgical units, and 1 RN to 2 patients in critical-care units. These healthcare professionals are also saying that higher mortality rates could be linked to poor staffing, because nurses are unable to give proper attention to patients and are being pulled in several directions at once.

 

Opinions about patient care issues resonated throughout the healthcare community. A June 3rd Rue Education Facebook discussion asked followers their thoughts on patient/safety issues.  Followers felt long hours with inadequate breaks, high nurse-to-patient ratio, and being called in multiple directions at once were among the top concerns that could affect patient safety.

 

With reform beginning to reshape the healthcare community, it will be interesting to see how the acts of LPNs/LVNs, Paramedics, Respiratory Therapists and other healthcare professionals will contribute to the future of healthcare.

Angela Jacquinto started her journey to become a registered nurse in December 2004.  Angela had been an LPN for one year and was working in a nursing home.  Angela wanted to become an RN because of a previous experience she had in her life.  Angela’s grandmother was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer.  When Angela saw the impact that the hospice nurses had, she decided right then and there that she would become an RN and work in hospice.  She wanted to provide the same support and care to patients and their families that she and her grandmother received.   

In May 2005, Angela reported that she had passed her first exam.  In 2005, Angela also switched jobs and began working as a hospice nurse.  She continued studying and progressing in 2006.  Angela put her studies on hold for a very brief period in January 2007 to welcome her third child into the world.  Angela jumped back into her studies passing the remaining exams, and applied for Clinical Performance in Nursing Examination (CPNE®) in November 2008.  

For nursing students, the CPNE is the final hurdle in the ASN degree earning process.  Angela’s CPNE was scheduled for May 15, 2009.  On May 14 Angela was at the Cincinnati airport on a layover on her way to the CPNE in Albany.  She had missed her original flight.  Luckily Angela had decided to schedule her flight the day before her CPNE allowing her plenty of time to travel.  On top of the missed flight and layover, Angela was not feeling well - all three of her children were sick the night before.  This is not the way she wanted her CPNE experience to begin. 

On May 15, Angela spoke to her Innovative Academic Solutions Academic Advisor several times from her hotel room where she was mentally preparing for the CPNE.  She was nervous, but she was ready.  At the end of the weekend, Angela sent a text message letting her Academic Advisor know that she had successfully passed the CPNE!

Congratulations to Angela on her achievements thus far!  Everyone at Rue and IAS is proud of her achievements, and we’re sure her grandmother is as well. 

Whether a person is in a doctor’s office, a hospital, a clinic or another type of healthcare facility, the first point of medical contact is usually with a healthcare professional, particularly a nurse.  And although these nurses have the overall goal of providing the best patient care, every nurse is not the same. Their educational levels, responsibilities and functions, salary differences and career path aspirations may vary.

 

The roles of licensed practical nurses (LPNs) and registered nurses (RNs) have significant differences. It’s important for nursing students to understand these differences because it can help them better assess their current educational goals and their future healthcare career path.

 

EDUCATIONAL DIFFERENCES

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN RESPONSBILITIES/FUNCTIONS 

CAREER PATH DIFFERENCES

 

Along with these differences, the US Bureau of Labor Board Statistics reports that an RN’s annual salary ranges from $59,600 to $77,200. An LPN’s salary generally falls between $25,400 and $47,400. Both RNs and LPNs may receive benefit packages, such as a 401k plan, paid vacation and sick time, tuition reimbursement and disability insurance. Benefit packages offered by employers can vary, so it’s important LPNs and RNs check with their human resources department to find out more about the benefits that are available to them as employees.

 

If you’re ready to take the next step in becoming an RN, Rue Education provides a comprehensive LPN/LVN to RN program. Programs are also available for Paramedics and Respiratory Therapists looking to advance to RN.

 

Contact a Rue Educational Consultant for more details at 1-866-499-5083 or fill out a contact form.

All across the United States, healthcare professionals are being saluted.
On May 6, 2010, Rue Education is joining the American Nurses Association in celebrating Nurses: Caring Today for a Healthier Tomorrow, as part of National Nurses Week, which is held May 6-12, every year. The purpose of Caring Today for a Healthier Tomorrow is to raise awareness of the value of nursing and help educate the public about the role nurses play in meeting the healthcare needs of the American people.

The ANA and Rue Education are proud to recognize healthcare professionals everywhere on this particular day for their dedication, commitment and tireless effort to maintaining the health of this nation seven days a week, 365 days a year.

 

National Nurses Week History
National Nurses Week begins each year on May 6th and ends on May 12th, Florence Nightingale's birthday. These permanent dates enhance planning, and position National Nurses Week as an established recognition event. As of 1998, May 8 was designated as National Student Nurses Day, to be celebrated annually. And as of 2003, National School Nurse Day is celebrated on the Wednesday within National Nurses Week each year.

The nursing profession has been supported and promoted by the American Nurses Association (ANA) since 1896. Each of ANA's state and territorial nurses associations promotes the nursing profession at the state and regional levels. Each conducts celebrations on these dates to recognize the contributions that nurses and nursing make to the community.

The ANA supports and encourages National Nurses Week recognition programs through the state and district nurses associations, other specialty nursing organizations, educational facilities, and independent health care companies and institutions.

National Nurses Week Facts

• There are nearly 2.9 million registered nurses in the United States. And, 2.4 million of them are actively employed.

• The American Nurses Association was founded in 1896.

• Isabel Adams Hampton Robb was the first president of the American Nurses Association.

• According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report, more than 2.9 million RNs will be employed in the year 2012, up 623,000 from the nearly 2.3 million RNs employed in 2002.

• The nation's nurses rank first for their honesty and integrity, with 82 percent of Americans rating them "high" or "very high," according to a 2005 Gallup Poll.

• The American Nurses Association consists of 54 state and territorial associations. Their mission is to work with ANA's Associate Organizational Members and Organizational Affiliates for the improvement of health standards and availability of healthcare services for all people, foster high standards for nursing, stimulate and promote the professional development of registered nurses, and advance their economic and general welfare.