Five Common Myths About LVNs in California

CDI Students and Instructor Smiling in front of clinic

A common misconception is that a licensed vocational (or practical) nurse is that they aren’t really nurses. Yes, becoming a registered nurse (RN) requires more schooling and RNs have different opportunities than an LVN. However, becoming a vocational nurse does mean that you are licensed, that you can deliver excellent care to patients and that you are, yes, a nurse.

First Common Misconception: LVN is a “Stepping Stone” to an RN

While many LVNs in California may eventually want to transition from an LVN to an RN, that doesn’t mean that you have to or that you everyone wants to. LVNs and RNs both undertake different levels of patient care. After getting some time under your belt as a career LVN, you may realize that the professional opportunities you wish to pursue push you towards enrolling in a bridge program. That isn’t to say that you will. 


Many LVNs spend an entire career, and a happy and satisfying one, working alongside patients in a variety of facilities. The challenges LVNs face are as complex and diverse as an RN. 

Fact: if you’re happy in your career as an LVN, then you have found a path that works for you.

Second LVN Myth: LVNs Can’t Assume Training Roles

LVNs get quite a bit of clinical training during their certification programs. So much so, that experienced LVNs often are called upon to train new CNAs and even take control of a facility’s CNA training program. In fact: LVNs often make great mentors for other LVNs and CNAs because of the amount of time they spend dealing with patients. 

Yet Another Myth: Most Facilities Prefer RNs to LVNs

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities tend to hire LVNs more heavily than RNs. Plenty of hospitals, doctor’s offices, and surgical centers also need LVNs for the same reasons that residential facilities do: to tend to the day-to-day care of patients. As nursing shortages become more acute, it’s increasingly likely that staffing demands will increase across the board and, yes, that includes LVNs.

No, an LVN is NOT a “Dead End” Job

Did you know that LVNs can become team leaders? Did you also know that as an LVN, you can enroll in specialty certification programs that could increase both your responsibilities and your salary? Of course there are management opportunities that only exist for RNs. That doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to explore exciting and diverse roles–and roles with long-term potential–as an LVN. 

We Saved the Best (or Worst?) Myth for Last: RNs are Smarter than LVNs

Even before you look for an LVN program in Los Angeles, you may have encountered this misconception, and one that we think is the most unfair misleading of them all. Becoming a nurse is tough, and working through an accelerated LVN program requires discipline and drive. 

We can’t say this enough: LVNs are REAL nurses. It’s a viable career that also requires a tremendous amount of leadership, patience, compassion and, yes, intelligence. 

When you become certified as an LVN, you will immediately be able to call yourself a nurse and do many of the very things that an RN does including taking vitals, administering medication, bedside care, wound care and more. It’s a challenging job and is in no way a “lesser” role than any other kind of nurse. Period.

Are you ready to step into the next challenge of your life? Contact us today to find out more about when our next 13-month, accelerated LVN program begins.

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