Licensed practical nurses (LPNs) care for people who are sick, injured, or disabled under the direction of physicians and registered nurses. The nature of the direction and supervision required varies by state and job setting. They care for patients in a variety of ways generally around basic bedside care. Many LPNs measure and record patients’ vital signs such as height, weight, temperature, blood pressure, pulse, and respiration. They prepare and give injections and enemas, monitor catheters, dress wounds, and more. To help keep patients comfortable, they often assist them with bathing, dressing, and personal hygiene, standing, and walking. They might also feed patients who need assistance. Experienced LPNs sometimes supervise nursing assistants and aides.
Training to become an LPN is available in colleges, technical institutes, and even in high schools. While this training is widely accessible, free training opportunities are a bit more difficult to locate. You have to know where to look. One option to pursue for free education to become an LPN is the Job Corps. Through the Job Corps is an excellent option for individuals interested in becoming licensed practical nurses but lacking the financial means necessary to pay for a program of study on their own. The Job Corps was established in the 1930s as an emergency relief program and to this day continues to assist individuals in free training and job placement.
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You can select your state from the below table to find out more options available for free LPN training:
All across the United States, the Job Corps exists to provide education and training programs that help young people launch into a career, earn their high school diploma or GED, and locate a good paying job. Young people who qualify for the services of the Job Corps must be at least 16 years of age and qualify as low income. Job Corps provides the all-around skills needed to succeed in a career and in life.
To locate a free LPN training program in your state, you first need to visit the Job Corp website and locate the offices in or near your community. Depending on the size, most states have more than one office, so finding a location near your community should not be difficult. If you cannot find one, you should contact your county Work Force office for further assistance. Meeting with a Job Corp representative is the best way to begin locating an LPN training opportunity in your area.
If you are in high school or know someone still is, many high schools across the country offer LPN courses to students who are enrolled. Whether in the context of public schools or private institutions, the training programs for becoming a licensed practical nurse are often built into the educational program for students choosing to go that route. While some students pursue free training in other industries, many opportunities exist for young men and women to be trained as a licensed practical nurse.
Other free options exist to train to become an licensed practical nurse, even at local colleges. Scholarships, state grants, and federal Pell Grants are frequently available to those without the financial means to pay for programs and training on their own. Though this option may seem more complicated than other free options because of the federal and state financial paperwork needed to be filled out, it is ultimately a worthwhile task as it will set you up to become licensed as a practical nurse through free education. To find out if you qualify for financial assistance through the form of scholarships or grants, you should contact the financial aid office at a local college campus to obtain the appropriate applications. Most of these offices are staffed by knowledgeable employees who can answer your questions about tuition-free opportunities for this training.
If you are already a certified nurse assistant in a local hospital, nursing home, or similar residential care facility you may happy to discover the possibility of tuition reimbursement from your employer. Many LPN students are actually CNA’s who are enjoying the benefits of tuition reimbursement and pursuing training to become an LPN. This is common practice across many industries, especially the health care arena. Employers like to encourage employees to further their education as it keeps their staffs current on new areas of health care education. This then results in a cutting edge, successful health care facility. This is an option you should not be bashful about pursuing if a training program fits your work and family schedule. Tuition reimbursement is a reasonable route to pursue.