Medical Training

Today, I had a great opportunity to meet with the Concord campus faculty of Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts. What a wonderful group they are! I was invited to give a presentation on the effective teaching methods for the didactic and clinical instructors. The meeting was very interactive, as the faculty members started asking questions and making comments, and the excitement of the event was present in the air.

As I was standing in front of this lively, intelligent group, I thought to myself: “What a wonderful idea to have faculty of different campuses interact with each other like this!” If anyone benefits from such interaction, it is our LVN students! It’s true! When working with an accelerated LVN programs, instructors have to work together, presenting a united front, when it comes to developing successful teaching methods and training techniques. Not only we get to “vent” about our problems in teaching, but we also find out the approaches of other teachers to certain challenges. And sometimes, we get to learn something completely unexpected and refreshing, leading to “Aha!” moments of our own, when we move outside of our comfortable boxes and look at what other instructors are doing.

I am proud to be a part of Gurnick Academy, who is promoting such interaction between the VN School faculties. Instructors get to learn from each other, share their concerns, experiences, and expertise with each other, making our LVN school stronger and more successful.

Did you see the fireworks this year? Amazing! Well, they are amazing every year, actually. This year, however, for Gurnick Academy, the fireworks seem especially bright to our LVN students, who have worked so hard during this past module! Now that the Final Exams are behind, it is time to enjoy the summer break.

Yes, yes, we know, it is never long enough, and the nursing students are craving a bit longer vacation, but in this accelerated program, two weeks is all you get, if you want to finish your VN nursing degree in just one year. This is why these students come to our LVN program: fast-paced, efficient, effective, packed with information, knowledge to gain, and skills to learn in a fairly short period of time. Besides, Gurnick is the LVN school who cares about our LVN students, helping each and every one of them to succeed and make it to that ever-so-anticipated graduation day.

In just another week, it will be time to again roll up our sleeves and get back to work, but for now, it is time for romantic getaways, hanging with family, Fourth of July fireworks, barbeque, and nice weather. There is time for work, and there is time for play. You deserve a good time, Gurnick!

Happy Father’s Day to all Gurnick Academy dads and those who whish to be dads! This weekend all of us are celebrating the special day, when we appreciate the men that supported us no matter what, who helped us up, when we were down, who gave us the roots and the wings to fly. This one is for the dads, who inspired our LVN students to aim high and never give up. This is for the dads, who believed in our potential and helped us on the way to success by supporting us morally, physically, and of course, financially!

Oh, who cares what they say, when they announce on the radio that the highest numbers of collect calls happen on Father’s Day. When you decide to become an LVN nurse and enter an LVN program, who is there to cosign your loan? Daddy, of course! He is your number one, always has been, and always will be. If not him, then who would help you? And when the money runs out, who will write you that check to help you out? LVN school is not cheap, and daddies know it. Besides, the world would be a much grimmer place without the dads.

So, this one is to the dads that stand by our LVN students, because if not for their masculine tender loving care, and their strong shoulder to lean on, where would they be?

The rights I am referring to are not professional rights, and not even the “five rights” of medication administration.  Instead a new set of rights are emerging, called the “Five Rights of Humor Administration.”  After reading an article in CE Express by Western Schools 2010 “Infusing Humor Into Healthcare” by Enid A. Schwartz, RN, MS, MC, I suspect students will read about these “rights” in future LVN school textbooks.  Schwartz states that the “rights” of using humor…[include:] the right patient, the right type of humor, the right time, the right amount of humor, and the right route or form of humor.” When checking the “right patient” the author emphasizes the importance of being sensitive and “for some patients, humor is inappropriate or unhelpful.

As a nurse I can not imagine telling a “knock-knock” joke to someone who is just coming out of anesthesia.  Not only would that be the “wrong patient” but also not the “right type” nor “right time” for humor.  The “right amount” of humor might not be as obvious to know.  I guess if you start to sound like a stand-up comic spouting off one-liners you have gone too far.  Then there is the “right route or form;” I recall a pediatric nurse, who instead of telling jokes, was great at imitating voices.  He could give instructions and reassurance as John Wayne or Mickey Mouse and have his patients laughing during what could have been a challenging procedure.  One of the reasons I enjoy being a part of the Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts – LVN program is how we value humor and without knowing it are already utilizing these “five rights.”

What happens to you when someone asks, “Did you hear about …?” Do you reactwith excitement or dread?  If it is dread that you experience, you are probably expecting to hear gossip or be part of what is called, “triangulation.”  Triangulation refers to the triangular shape, as one easily moves outward to one of the 3 points.  In other words, as you listen to your friend speak about someone, you suddenly become connected to the speaker (gossiper). This then triangulates the absent party turning them into the “outsider” or “target. “Whether you are already a LVN in California or a student in a LVN program, you have probably encountered the challenge to both listen to gossip while trying to hold onto your professional values. This scenario sounds like the challenge of riding a donkey while drinking from a crystal goblet, eventually you will only be able to hold onto one, or you will fall off the donkey and break the glass.   By now you might be wondering why people gossip?  According to Anne Katherine, MA, author of “Where to Draw the Line,” she says that gossip can be used to discharge feelings.  Pathetically instead of directly communicating feelings and unmet needs to someone, the suppressed feelings are funneled indirectly with gossip, and leads to mistrust and a fragmented community.  One way to keep your LVN programs or community free from the negative effects of gossip is to stop “the donkey” in its tracks by asking the following:

Will this conversation later be shared directly with the absent party?

Does this conversation bring clarity?

Does this conversation compromise needs such as, mutual respect, trust, or emotional safety?

If your answer to any or all of the questions above is “No,” then protect your “chalice of values” by becoming a compassionate nurse.

A little girl with curly hair and big brown eyes is staring at me with a question in her eyes. So much to wander about, so much unknown, so many questions to be answered! All in its own time. That little girl is all grown up now. But back then she wanted to know: who am I? What will I become when I grow up? Will I be happy? Will I make other people happy?

With a sigh, I answer to that little girl on the picture, the picture of me, seven years old: “I really hope so.” I hope, I make other people happy, I hope, I have grown to be a good person. I hope, I will be special to someone who needs me and loves me. After all, I am making something great of my life: I am studying to become and LVN nurse. Dad always said, it is good for every family to have a medical professional on board. I did not realize, he was talking about me, until recently.

I chose to go to an LVN program here in California to make a difference in this world. I know, it’s a tough one. The LVN courses are challenging, and the pace is so fast that sometimes it makes days and nights blend into a timeless mass of hours and hours of studying, LVN classes, clinical practice, homework… No one said, it would be easy, yet everyone is so supportive. I am so grateful to my mom and dad for believing in me, investing their time and money into my education, investing their hopes and wishes into my future. Because, they too believe that I will grow up to be special and important. I will grow up to be a Nurse.

I am proud to be an LVN student now. I will not let my parents down. Even if sometimes I feel guilty that my mom and dad had to give up so much, depriving themselves of simple pleasures in life, just to give me a chance at a better life, I am happy and proud that they believe in me enough to give me that chance. Mom and dad have not gone on vacation for years, working day and night at their drycleaners business, just to make sure that their little girl with curly hair and brown eyes could finish her studies at the LVN school to get that diploma, so that she could proudly say, “Thank you, mom and dad! I am a Nurse now, but we did it together.”

Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts will be closed in observance of the Memorial Day to honor the memory of all those who did not return from the battle fields. And as an LVN school, we remember not only the men and women who gave up their lives fighting for a better and brighter tomorrow, but also the memory of all the military nurses, who just as selflessly fought in the same wars. Except, their battle was not on the fields of Germany or France, but these were the battles to preserve lives, to save the wounded, to alleviate the pain and the suffering of the dying soldiers in first aid tents and military hospitals. These “soldiers in nursing uniforms” fought with all their might for every human life they could save. Their efforts were just as heroic as of the ones fighting the enemy face to face.

Being an LVN college, we educate the future LVN nurses not only on the subjects of medical sciences, we also teach them the importance of preserving and treasuring the most important and valuable of the healthcare aspects: the human factor. Being there for the patients, not only to inject a medication, dress a surgical wound, or pass a glass of water, but giving a shoulder to cry on, being an empathetic listener, bringing up a patient’s spirit by an innocent joke or a quick prayer, is what our LVN program is teaching our future LVN nurses. This Memorial Day we pay tribute to of all the “soldiers in nursing uniforms” of the past, present, and future.

Mary is an lvn student and a single mom. Just like so many other single moms, Mary is struggling to make ends meet. After an excruciatingly painful divorce, Mary had to take control over her life. She had to get back up on her feet to provide for her 6 year old daughter Amy, who is now in kindergarten and has no clue how hard her mom is trying to make ends meet. Amy is a happy little girl. Her mom loves her, making sure, Amy has everything she needs.

After her life was turned upside down, Mary had to figure out the next step in her path. She had to think fast. Being a realtor in the current economy was not the best way to go on. With the housing market plummeting down faster than sinking Titanic, Mary couldn’t make ends meet. She had to sell her house just to keep up with her bills. Something had to change. Fast!

In the midst of the financial despair following the divorce, after devastating crash of her social status, as well as her shaken self-confidence, Mary came to a brilliant thought: change life completely!

On this blank new page in her life, Mary decided to write a new story and make a very bold move: go back to school. Start from scratch, get a new career. This is when Mary became determined to become an lvn nurse.

Looking for the right lvn program was not easy and once found the right school, serious adjustments in Mary’s life had to be made. It is difficult to go back to studies after decades being out of school. Mary had to cut her hours at work to keep up with the lvn school classes and assignments. No one told her, how difficult this would be: juggling school, work, home, her daughter, and much more.

However, on the first day of the lvn program, Mary discovered that she was not alone. Almost everyone in her new class was there to change their lives. Almost everyone came to the lvn program to become somewhat renewed, stronger, better. Someone was there to switch from their high-tech career, because they got sick and tired of computers, and wanted some human contact. Someone came from the world of finance, because of the problems in the economy, and a need to change their life perspectives. Someone went to lvn school simply because they couldn’t find the fulfillment through their previous job, and craved the inner gratification of helping other people. But all the students in Mary’s class came to get the lvn training to change their lives.

Today Mary is on her way to her goal. Someone said, a goal is a dream with a date on it, and they were right: Mary’s dream of making life better for herself and her daughter Amy will soon come true. And even though Mary is struggling just like all other lvn students keeping up with school and her growing daughter, while trying to make ends meet, she is happy, because she is on her way to something fresh and exciting. And maybe the road to Mary’s dream is full of curves and obstacles, this story has a happy ending, or, perhaps, a happy beginning…

Striving for higher heights, reaching for excellence, we at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts are dedicated to the ever-increasing quality in education in ca lvn nursing. This is why our lvn nursing students have established a student body government, who meet on the regular bases to discuss the latest updates in our lvn nursing students’ school life.

The student body government was formed to address our lvn students’ concerns, suggestions for improvement, to bring faculty and students closer together, and to bring school administration up to date on our students’ experiences at our lvn school. Regular meetings of the student body government have been oriented to improve and maintain a fulfilling relationship between the students and the school, as well as to ensure high quality of education, and student satisfaction.

Since this organization was formed, we have seen many positive changes in the relationship between our lvn students and instructors, counselors, and staff. There is more synergy in our work.  The students feel that they are being heard, and their concerns and questions are being answered. Faculty and staff feel that there is a better communication within our lvn school, and positive energy is in the air.  We are proud of this achievement, because continuous quality improvement in the way we keep our school is what drives Gurnick Academy forward!

Living and working in California’s fast lane, we have to keep up with the pace in CA nursing education. But we are committed to excellence, devoted to constant advancing in lvn education, because we are bound to be the best!

If you are a person who would like to build a career in the medical field as an LVN (LPN) or Licensed Vocational Nurse then you are most definitely making the right choice. A career in LVN has mostly advantages in terms of financial, emotional and physical benefits.  With nursing profession you will get a financial stability and the job security, emotional satisfaction and since you are almost always on the go, physical toning.

Licensed Vocational Nurses usually work under the direct supervision of doctors and RNs (Registered Nurses). Primary responsibilities are include, but are not limited to caring for the ill, injured, convalescent and disabled patients. LVNs are employed not only by the hospitals, surgical centers, doctor’s office or convalescent homes, but even in medical beauty spas and educational institutions.

LVN’s day to day schedule includes giving the bedside care to the patients with the responsibilities of checking blood pressure, measuring temperature, polls and respiration, give injections and monitor patients.  There is a high demand for nurses not only in the United States but also everywhere across the globe. Statistics reveal that there is a shortage of well-trained vocational nurses in the current job market which might even double or triple in the coming years.

In order to become a Licensed Vocational Nurse, one needs to graduate from an approved educational institution, receive certain number of internship hours, as well as pass national certification exam. Most of the vocational schools offer an LVN Program and prepare graduates for the NCPLEX exam.  Some LVN schools offer shorter courses than others. It takes about 15-18 months and up to 2 years of training and internship to be able to become an LVN.

The type of work they do is challenging and fun, beneficial emotionally, mentally and financially, holds strong during recession, not only permits a person to self-actualize, but also is meaningful and significant for oneself and for others. Job roles of LVNs include and are not limited to the care of the sick and recovering patients. LVNs take care of the patient’s health by administering injections, collecting the samples for analysis, dressing applications and in some cases also performing laboratory testing and other lab work. In some states an LVN never starts and intravenous line, while in others they may be able to obtain IV certifications to perform this procedure. In areas where they don’t start IVs most LVNs can take blood and administer injections.

There are a lot of opportunities for LVNs and RNs…
Nursing is the largest health-care occupation and one of 10 occupations projected to have the largest numbers of new jobs annually. Some states report current and projected shortages of nurses, primarily due to an aging workforce and recent declines in nursing school enrollments. Faster than average growth also will be driven by technological advances in patient care, which permit nurses to treat more medical problems, and an increasing emphasis on preventive care. In addition, the number of older people, who are much more likely than younger people to need nursing care, is projected to grow rapidly.

A great thing about becoming an LVN is the fact that this career is a great stepping stone into the professional healthcare career…you can then take a course (so called Bridge program ) after you become an LVN and in less than 2 years become and RN – registered nurse…which is the career one step less than MD. Some RNs start their careers as licensed practical nurses or nursing aides, and then go back to school to receive their RN degree.

In management, nurses can advance from assistant unit manger or head nurse to more senior-level administrative roles of assistant director, director, vice president, or chief nurse. Some nurses move into the business side of health care. Their nursing expertise and experience on a health care team equip them to manage ambulatory, acute, home-based, and chronic care. Employers—including hospitals, insurance companies, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and managed care organizations, among others—need RNs for health planning and development, marketing, consulting, policy development, and quality assurance. Other nurses work as college and university faculty or conduct research.