Nursing is one of the noblest professions anyone can take up. Nurses are the backbone of medical institutions and programs like LPN are magnificent tools to inject competent nurses into the healthcare eco-system. While LPN programs can be a great choice for budding nurses, it is imperative you spend time considering the major factors while choosing the best online LPN programs.
What exactly is an LPN Program?
To become a licensed practical nurse, you need to take an LPN program where you learn skills like:
- Administering medication
- Observing patients for health changes
- Providing immunizations
- Blood draws & injections
- Communicating medical history to RN and doctors
- Ensuring patients’ comfort
- Monitoring vital signs, ex: temperature and blood pressure
- Reporting patients’ statuses to RNs and doctors.
- Administering timely food intake, bathroom help, and other daily activities
Benefit #1: Availability of Jobs
As people age, they require more quality medical assistance. Due to the growing population, this requirement is on the rise. The number of jobs in the US for LPN nurses is estimated to 657,200 in the year 2021 and expected to grow and expected to grow by 6% in the years 2021-2031.
The healthcare industry is always on the lookout for skilled nurses. Nurses are an essential part of the medical ecosystem and therefore, the job availability for such roles is abundant.
Benefit #2: Fastest Route to a Nursing Career
LPN courses are typically 12 which is lesser in comparison to approximately 2-3 years to earn an associate or bachelor’s degree in nursing (ADN/ASN or BSN).
This allows people looking for stability or practical experience to quickly get access to jobs and practical learning opportunities. Students of LPN have an easier time skilling up to become registered nurses since they have a solid base of practical experience in the field.
Benefit #3: Career Growth
Becoming a licensed practical nurse offers a great career trajectory. Firstly, you would be working alongside experienced doctors and registered nurses where you can absorb ample practical knowledge.
You could also have an advantage moving from being a practical nurse to a registered nurse in the future as you would have the fundamental skill base for it. Registered nurses approximately earn $30000 more annually on average than licensed practical nurses.
Benefit #4: Myriad of Work Settings
Practice nurses are required in hospitals, residential care facilities, private clinics, government institutions, and in-home services. There are plenty of work environments and experiences open for exploration to every practical nurse. While the role remains the same, each working setting has a different operational style, set of learnings, and payscale in store.
Benefit #5: High Earning Potential
It’s good to know that the field you are thinking to pursue has one of the best compensations in the marketplace.
The factors that affect your salary would be:
- Years of experience
- Education level
- The country and state you choose to work
- Your area of specialty
- The work setting you choose, ex. hospital, residency care, etc.
While the compensation would vary according to the above factors, on average, students who graduated from LPN can expect an average annual salary of $48,820.
Currently, the highest-paying state for LPNs is Alaska and California. Alaska offers $32.51/hour with a $67,620 average annual salary and California offers $30.81/hour with a $64,090 average annual salary. This is followed by Massachusetts, Washington and Nevada.
On the scale of work setting, it starts with home healthcare, providing $69,350 going to pharmaceutical industries providing $85,260 average annual salaries for nurses,
Conclusion
A career in nursing can be highly rewarding. The industry feedback for nurse roles in areas of salaries, quality of work life and job satisfaction incline towards the positive. The above factors are meant to outline the important aspects of consideration for making the correct choices for your career.
We wish you luck!
