Practical Nursing
Did you know that practical nursing positions seem poised to become Canada’s next hot-ticket job? As of 2002, the ratio of practicing registered nurses to the Canadian population was one nurse for every 136 Canadians. As well, the average age of a practicing registered nurse went up to 44.2 years from 42.6 years in 1998. A comprehensive national study, published by the Canadian Nurses Association, predicted a shortage in Canada (except Quebec) of between 59,000-113,000 nurses by 2011.
Quebec, who has a nursing association separate from the rest of the country, predicted a shortage of 11,000 nurses between 2001 and 2015. Of Canada’s 1990 nursing graduates, 20% had left the profession five years later, and nearly 10% of nursing graduates emigrated to the United States between 1995 and 1997, mostly to find work. As Canada’s baby-boomer population continues to age well into the 21st century, there is a growing need for people in the health services industry. This practical nursing shortage is not unique to Canada. One year today, CBC reported that international delegates at a nursing convention in St. John’s reported that similar shortages were occurring in their own countries. Therefore, the employment rate for graduating practical nurses seems to be at an all time high, both in Canada and abroad. From the U.S. to Australia, there is an expanding need for practical nurses around the world.
But before you don your scrubs, it’s important to understand just what such a career entails.
Licensed practical nurses provide nursing care usually under the direction of medical practitioners, registered nurses or other health team members. They provide nursing services to patients based on patient assessment and care planning procedures, and perform nursing interventions such as taking vital signs, administering and monitoring medication as well as applying aseptic techniques including sterile dressing and infection control. Beyond the more formal aspects of the job, practical nursing is a people-centric job. Practical Nurses ensure that patients are comfortable at all times, especially before and after major operations. They also provide safety and health education to patients and their families. Operating room technicians generally prepare patients for surgery by washing, shaving and sterilizing the patients’ operative areas. They also assist surgical teams by laying our instruments, setting up equipment, passing instruments to surgeons and maintaining the sterilization of the surgical tools and operating room. Some of the positions that a practical nurse may fill are:
• Certified nursing assistant (CNA)
• Licensed nursing assistant
• Licensed practical nurse (L.P.N.)
• Operating room technician
• Registered nursing assistant (R.N.A.)
• Registered practical nurse (R.P.N.)
Licensed practical nurses practice in a variety of settings, which include:
* Community Health Centres
* Community Nursing
* Doctor’s Offices
* Foot Care Private Practice
* General Hospitals
* Home Care
* Independent Business
* Industrial Settings
* Long Term Care Facilities
* Private Homes/Agencies
* Psychiatric Facilities
* Public Health and/or Schools
* Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Centres
Have you noticed that most of these positions require you to be “certified,” “licensed,” or “registered?” You have to receive significant training before becoming a practical nurse. Unfortunately, candy striping experience doesn’t count!
Once you decide that practical nursing is the profession you want to pursue, there are a wealth of options within Canada.. Admission requirements for practical nursing programs generally are:
-High school diploma
- Completion of Grade 12 Biology with a minimum grade of “C”.
-Some English or math competency
Most practical nursing courses only take about a year to complete—meaning that you’ll be out of the classroom and attending to patients in no time. One of the benefits of becoming a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) is the diversity that such a job affords you in Canada. You have the option to work in almost any part of a hospital that requires any degree of patient care.
Following the completion of a program, practical nursing graduates will generally be able to provide care in partnership with other health care professionals to selected clients of all ages chosen on the basis of acuity and complexity in the following areas: long-term care, extended care, home care, community settings, and general medicine and surgery areas in acute care. In fact, practical nursing graduates can also branch out into other areas of work that, while related, offer different opportunities and experiences. One such example home aide workers such as visiting housekeepers.
Visiting homemakers provide ongoing or short-term home support services. They are employed by government, non-profit and home care agencies, or are self-employed. Housekeepers perform housekeeping and other home management duties in private households, embassies and other residential establishments. Companions provide elderly and convalescent clients with companionship and personal care in residential settings. They are employed by home care agencies or may be self-employed.
Visiting homemakers care for individuals and families during periods of incapacitation, convalescence or family disruption.
They help maintain the safe and healthy functioning of a family’s day-to-day living. This means they may be called on to administer bedside and personal care to clients such as aid in ambulation, bathing, personal hygiene, and dressing and undressing; plan and prepare meals and special diets, and feed or assist in feeding clients and demonstrate infant care to new parents.
If the situation calls for it, they are equipped to perform routine health-related duties such as changing non-sterile dressings, administering medications and collecting specimens under the general direction of a home care agency supervisor or nurse.
However, if you enjoy being in a hospital setting, working as a nurse’s aide, orderly or as a patient service associate may be the right career path for you. Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates have a close relationship with patients. They answer call signals, and help patients with their daily activities, such as getting dressed or going to the bathroom. Their main concern is the patient’s comfort, and may arrange physical or leisure activities for patients.
Practical nursing isn’t for everyone—but if you enjoy doing vital, necessary work while working closely with the people who need it, than a career in practical nursing may be right for you.
Thanks to these sources:
BMJ (British Medical Journal):
http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/320/7241/1030
Human Resources and Social Development Canada:
http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/home.shtml
CBC.com:
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2007/06/06/nursing-shortages.html
and:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/healthcare/nurses.html
