Greetings -

I'm in the process of completing prerequisites at my community college. Since March, I've also been volunteering a few hours a week at a local hospital. I'm having a hard time deciding whether to apply to the LPN program at my community college, or to the RN program. The LPN program actually was just reintroduced last fall, appparently at the request of local employers to help deal with worker shortages. It is the only LPN program in my area (there are 5 schools with RN programs within an hour's drive of my house).

Some of the nurses I work with at the hospital say getting an LPN to start was a great idea because it gets you a degree faster and you can start working sooner, and then maybe an employer would offer continuing education assistance to get an ADN or BSN. Other nurses say that LPNs are being phased out and it is much better to get an ADN instead.

I'm open minded as to the type of setting I want to work in - doctor's offices, hospitals, community health clinics, nursing home, home health care, hospice, correctional, etc. I'm willing to experiment as I realize it can take time to find a position that's the right fit for me.

Anyone have any suggestions or thoughts to share? Is the LPN being phased out in all health care settings? Is it better to get an ADN or BSN even when you aren't set on working in a particular setting or specialty area? Thanks so much!

Thanks for responding to my query! Yes, there are some LPNs are the hospital where I volunteer, but they are outnumbered by RNs. This hospital also always has far more RN job openings than LPNs.

The floor nurses I've shadowed have been in women's health (mostly post-op) and a telemetry unit (general adult patient population), and they've seemed to be a lot more stressed out than other hospital staff I've worked with (ER, radiology, and outpatient survey). They're the ones who are recommending against getting the LPN. On the other hand, the RNs in outpatient/stage II recovery think getting an LPN is a great idea. They also seem to be a lot more relaxed and less stressed out with their work. I have no idea if the difference in the working conditions is influencing their advice.

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