Preliminary data from the indicate that RN employment has remained stable over the past four years, but many older RNs have left nursing.

With a shortage of RNs, employers are increasing their efforts to retain RNs and develop career paths for newly-graduated RNs.

It appears there is no better time than the present for young adults to start a rewarding career in the healthcare industry. If you are looking to get your foot in the door of the healthcare field, studying to become a might just be the perfect fit for you.

But hold on, wait, what exactly is a vocational nurse?

A VN, as defined by the (BVNPT), is “an entry-level health care provider who is responsible for rendering basic nursing care.”

VNs work in medical settings next to doctors and registered nurses, performing tasks like taking blood pressure, changing bandages and maintaining patients’ health records. Depending on the state in which you are employed, a vocational nurse’s role may be vastly different from that of VNs in other states.

To help you figure out if studying to become a vocational nurse is the right move, below are a few positives and three not-as-positives to consider before enrolling in an VN program.

CON: Responsibilities Are Limited

Vocational nurses work under the supervision of doctors and registered nurses in a variety of different medical settings. Some of the common tasks vocational nurses execute include the following:

• Monitoring a patient’s health (e.g., blood pressure, temperature)
• Administration of basic care (e.g., applying/changing bandages, inserting catheters)
• Listening to and addressing patient concerns
• Maintaining patient health records

The responsibilities of a VN are not as extensive as those of a registered nurse (RN), as RNs are able to administer medicine and perform a wider array of jobs.

It is worth noting, however, that your role as a VN may vary greatly depending on the state in which you are employed and the medical establishment for whom you work. But, the tasks still play a vital role in the overall care of patients.

PRO: Start Working Sooner

In studying to be a VN, you will be able to complete your education and prepare for a career in a shorter period of time. Most VN programs can be completed in 12 and 20 months, whereas other nursing education programs can take more than twice that time to finish.

CON: Do Similar Work as RNs with a Different Pay Scale

While the responsibilities of RNs and VNs are quite similar, there are some differences. RNs for example, are allowed to administer medications, vaccines and other pharmaceuticals, whereas VNs are not permitted to do so, save for some rare exceptions.

PRO: Many Options to Further Your Education

The good thing about studying to become a VN is that once you earn your certification and work for a little while, there are programs available for you to upgrade your occupational title to registered nurse (RN).

There are also VN to BSN (Bachelor of Science of Nursing) programs offered nationwide if such a degree would be more useful in making your nursing dreams a reality.

Advancing your education allows to you to specialize in an aspect or type of nursing that perhaps sparked your interest during your VN program or time in the workforce as a VN.

“The best way to be a nurse is to lose yourself in the service of others. That’s what nursing is all about.”

Abigail Ignacio, VN Instructor

PRO: Make a Difference in the Lives of Patients

Fewer things in life are more gratifying than the knowledge that you helped make a difference in someone’s life. If you are considering a degree in the health care field, it is a fairly safe bet that you realize this and wish to do something about it.

An aspect of a VN’s job that cannot be overstated is listening to patients. Hearing what they are saying and making them comfortable contribute greatly toward treatment and their overall wellbeing.

Discover the ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ Vocational Nursing Difference

A thorough education can help you, an aspiring vocational nurse, separate yourself from the pack of other VN candidates when looking for your first nursing job.

ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s is one of the largest and best VN programs in the state of California. The program is also accredited by the California Board of Vocational Nurses and Psychiatric Technicians.

As a student enrolled in ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s VN program, you will receive a well-rounded nursing education that will allow you to provide optimal patient care after you pass your licensure exam.

ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ offers both full-time and evening & weekend enrollment in its VN program, providing you with flexibility around the other obligations in your life.

The full-time program offers classes during the day and can be completed in 12 months. The evening & weekend program offers classes during evenings and weekends to accommodate students who work other jobs.

Students in the evening & weekend  program complete it in 18 months. ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ offers its Vocational Nursing program at its Colton Campus.

ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ offers plentiful resources to its vocational nursing students to help them prepare for the. Such resources include full-time NCLEX tutors and NCLEX review classes, which are offered for free as part of enrollment in the program.

ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ also offers you career assistance beyond acquiring your vocational nursing license, including resume help and mock interviews. These resources can help you capitalize on lucrative entry-level health care jobs.

Vocational nurses are able to get into the thick of nursing and help better the lives of patients.

The need for nurses will not be going away any time soon.

Discover the ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ Difference. Launch your rewarding VN career today by calling (888) 504-2552 to speak to one of our friendly representatives.

What is it that makes a particular career essential?

According to the , “essential workers are those who conduct a range of operations and services that are typically essential to continue critical infrastructure operations. Critical infrastructure is a large, umbrella term encompassing sectors from energy to defense to agriculture.” If you’re thinking that covers a lot of ground, you’re right. But let’s explore a few examples of what makes an essential career essential.

Healthcare workers

This is pretty much a no-brainer, but there are few times in modern history when healthcare workers were needed more. And the healthcare industry is made up of far more than just talented doctors and surgeons. The nurses, medical assistants and administrative healthcare workers are equally important to the vitality and effectiveness of a medical team. Consider the typical duties of these healthcare heroes.

• Vocational Nurse(VN) – LVNs provide essential assistance to doctors and registered nurses and play a key role on a medical team. They routinely prepare patients for exams, perform lab tests, record vital signs, update medical records and much more.

• Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) – CNAs work under the supervision of a registered nurse and provide personal patient care such as bathing, feeding and dressing patients, as well as recording vital signs, answering patient calls and monitoring a patient’s behavior.

• Medical Assistant Administrative & Clinical – This versatile healthcare worker fulfills an important role by performing clinical duties as well as the administrative side of the equation. Medical assistants greet patients, schedule appointments, process insurance forms, record patient medical histories and more. But they will also routinely take blood pressure readings and monitor heart rates.

People working in any of these healthcare careers are more than just critical members of a healthcare team, they are some of our most essential workers during a crisis.

Critical technical trades

Maybe less obvious as essential careers in the workforce, there are several trade and technical careers that are undoubtedly critical to keeping infrastructure intact during any local or national crisis or disaster.

• Electricians – When you ask yourself “what »ĺ´Ç±đ˛ő˛Ô’t run on electricity”, you can quickly come to the conclusion that without skilled electricians the giant machinery of not just healthcare but just about everything that moves would come to a screeching halt.

• HVAC Technicians – The world survived before central heat and air, right? Of course. But it’s safe to say a lot more people would struggle to survive a pandemic without the ability to not only manage the climate inside homes, hospitals and buildings everywhere, but also to control the indoor air quality. HVAC professionals are also the folks keeping refrigeration systems smoothly functioning to protect critical medical supplies, food and other essentials that simply wouldn’t fare well without it. There just isn’t enough ice.

• Welders – There are some essential careers that by their very nature are essential to other essential careers. Welders are integrally involved in just about every kind of infrastructure operation including HVAC, electrical and more. Without these employees working to manufacture the parts, technicians would be unable to service and repair the machinery.

Amidst a global pandemic, there are likely a lot more changes to come.  But what has become clearer than ever before is that essential workers, the men and women who get up and go to work every day – pandemic or not, are keeping the wheels on the bus in the post COVID-19 world as we know it. So, if you’re looking for what’s next for your career, why not consider a career path that makes YOU essential. If you’d like to learn more about the essential careers above, check out the programs at ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝. ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ is training the next generation of indispensable heroes who keep our communities going in good times and bad. Contact us today for more information or to schedule a campus tour.

After completing your LVN program and passing your licensure exam, you’ll be joining in America. That might seem rather large, but it pales in comparison to the over 46 million people living in the United States who are over 65 years old. Not to mention that 80 percent of older adults have at least one chronic disease and 68 percent have two, according to the . Those are a lot of people will inevitably need healthcare.

The career path you have chosen will have no shortage of work in the coming years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment for licensed practical and vocational nurses to through 2024. That being said, it is difficult to take advantage of these great job prospects without a good education.

So how do you get started? That is probably the question on your mind. You can’t become an LVN and help people if you do not know where to begin. Luckily, beginning your vocational nursing education is an easy process with lots of help available if you need it.

This post will discuss how to get started in the LVN program and hopefully address many of the questions you have about beginning your journey to licensure.

What do I need to enroll to ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝?

To enroll at ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝, you need either a high school diploma or a GED. The high school or GED program must be accredited by the United States Department of Education.

I have my high school diploma/GED. What’s next?

With your high school or GED diploma in hand, the next step toward enrolling at ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ is to contact an admissions advisor. You can do this by either filling out the contact form on the ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ website or calling 888-497-3382. Calling the phone number will put you in direct contact with an admissions advisor. If you opt to fill out the contact form, an advisor will contact you via email shortly after your submission.

The admissions advisor will provide you with additional information about ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ and schedule an interview. The interview will give you the chance to learn more about the program and help the advisor understand your career goals.

After your interview, the next step on your enrollment quest is to schedule a campus tour. Your visit to ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s Colton Campus will award you a chance to see everything the campus has to offer. Prospective students also get to see what the relationship between teachers and students is like, as this is a vital part of an education.

I’m blown away by the tour of campus. Can I just enroll already?

Once you decide that the LVN program and ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ are for you, there are still a few more hurdles to clear. One such hurdle is an entrance exam assessing your math and English skills. Though ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ doesn’t require students to take the SAT, the school still needs to see what you know.

Once you complete the aptitude test, the only obstacle standing between you and your LVN dreams is financing your education. The tuition costs for ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s LVN program range from $30,507-$32,844 depending on the type of enrollment.

The cost of the LVN might seem like a lot of money, but it is actually a fraction of the price of a four-year nursing degree. A four-year BSN degree can cost between $40,000 and $200,000.

Additionally, ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ offers a variety of financing and payment options. These include a number of federal and state financial aid programs. You can also meet with a staff member of ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s Financial Aid Department to explore your options.

Financial Aid

The easiest way to find out what kind of federal financial aid you qualify for is to file a FAFSA. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) helps college students get their share of more than $150 billion of financial aid awarded annually. These funds are provided by Federal Student Aid, which is part of the United States Department of Education.

The FAFSA takes your personal financial into account when determining how much aid you will be awarded. Factors such as your or your parents’ incoming, expected financial contribution and other assets are among those that may influence your award.

Federal student aid is parsed out in a few different ways:

• Grants
• Loans
• Work-study funds

Grants are allotments of money given to you by the government. You do not need to pay back these sums after you graduate. Grants are typically need-based awards.

Loans are sums of money that you borrow from the government to finance your education. These come in both subsidized and unsubsidized varieties. Subsidized are loans that the government pays the interest on while you are enrolled in school. Unsubsidized loans accrue interest as soon as you take them out.

Following graduation, you are required pay back the loans in full with interest.

Work-study jobs are part-time jobs awarded to students while they are in school. These jobs allow students to work to earn some of the money they need for their education. Work-study jobs are available to both full-time and part-time students.

Many states and colleges also use the FAFSA to determine your eligibility for state- and school-awarded aid.

VN Program

Once your finances are in order, you can enroll in the VN program. You can choose between full-time and part-time enrollment.

The full-time program offers classes during the day and can be completed in 12 months. The part-time program offers classes during evenings and weekends to accommodate students who work other jobs. Part-time students complete the program in 18 months.

The LVN program consists of both theory and clinical components. The curriculum is comprised of 632 lecture hours and 751 clinical hours. During the program, VN students will gain exposure to a wide array of subjects, including:

• Anatomy and Physiology
• Nutrition and Psychology
• Pharmacology
• Pediatrics
• Obstetrics

Once the clinical and theoretical work is completed, students receive a certificate from the program. Following completion of the program, aspiring vocational nurses must pass the National Council Licensure Examination. Candidates must pass the exam to work in the healthcare field as LVNs.

Licensure exam

Every vocational nurse in the United States is required to pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX). The exam measures a candidate’s competencies needed to perform the role of a vocational nurse safely and effectively. With VN programs, there is no such waiting or rigorous application process for admission.

Given that VNs perform a variety of duties in a variety of different medical settings, it is no surprise that the job outlook for vocational nurses is promising.

A quality education can help an aspiring vocational nurse stand out during their quest for healthcare employment. ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s Vocational Nursing program is one of the largest LVN programs in California, is accredited by the California Board of Vocational Nurses and Psychiatric Technicians. Students who enroll in ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝â€™s LVN program receive a well-rounded nursing education that allows them to provide optimum care after licensure.

ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ offers its vocational nursing students the resources they to ace the NCLEX. Such resources include:

• Full-time NCLEX tutors
• NCLEX review classes
• Financial assistance with first-time application costs and other fees associated with licensure (in certain cases)

ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ also offers students career assistance beyond acquiring their vocational nursing license, including resume help, mock interviews and externships. These resources help LVN students capitalize on entry-level healthcare jobs.

Once you pass the NCLEX, you can begin working as a vocational nurse. You will be able to work alongside doctors and registered nurses in a multitude of medical settings. You will help patients get better by handling a variety of tasks such as:

• Taking a patient’s blood pressure
• Applying/changing bandages
• Inserting catheters
• Listening to patients’ concerns and address them
• Maintaining patients’ health records

Vocational nurses start making a difference and saving lives sooner than other nurses. They are needed just as much as registered nurses and doctors. The need for nurses will not be going away any time soon. The sooner you enroll, the sooner you can start saving lives.

Discover the ĐÇżŐ´«Ă˝ Difference. Get started today at summitcollege.edu.