Lobsters, forest, and oceanscape define the farthest Northeast state of Maine. If you are from Maine and are seeking information on various steps involved with becoming an LPN in Maine, keep reading on to find out about what a typical LPN schooling program looks like, what the professional duties for LPNs tend to be, and what some requirements for becoming licensed as an LPN in Maine are. Additionally, you’ll see more information at the bottom of the page that lists various local schools in Maine that may have Practical Nursing courses.
Practical Nursing Programs: General Information
Practical Nursing programs in Maine generally consist of clinicals, labs, and classes. Classes may be either general education (like psychology or English) or nursing; nursing classes usually comprise the heart of LPN programs. Some nursing classes may cover topics like basic anatomy, mental health, nutrition, and other medical topics. Because some of these classes will teach practical skills, students are usually offered labs to practice these skills in. They may practice their skills in a lab under the supervision of an instructor. Clinicals allow students to bring their practical skills and healthcare knowledge they are learning into the real world, such as at a hospital. During clinicals, which tend to meet around once a week, students get to have some LPN responsibilities, which may begin at a lower level and then broaden as the students continue through the program.
Typical Job Duties/Tasks for LPNs in Maine
LPNs in Maine may perform work in a wide range of medical settings. As a result of this, the job duties they are given cover a wide range as well and might be different among various locations. For example, LPNs who work in a nursing home may help patients with mobility issues, where an LPN working in a doctor’s office may not help patients with this problem as often. Other duties that LPNs may have fall under categories like bedside care, specialized tasks, and patient health status monitoring. For bedside care, LPNs may help patients with personal hygiene, like wash wounds, change bandages, bathe patients, and dress patients. For specialized tasks, LPNs might work with IVs, work with catheters, and help patients who need dialysis, if the LPNs have had the appropriate special education needed to perform these tasks. LPNs may also help monitor patients’ health by taking and recording vital signs (i.e. temperature, blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, etc.). They may also report to the doctors any concerns the patients may have about their health or healthcare. Finally, LPNs may perform any other job duties that are required of them, such as completing paperwork, administering medication via injection or by mouth, and supervising aides and assistants.
LPN Licensing Information in Maine
Maine, along with other states, has a set of requirements and a specific application process that practical nurse applicants for licensure must complete before being licensed by the state board of nursing. While some of those requirements and parts of the process of applying for licensure are presented below, laws change, and not every requirement or special situation may be covered. For up-to-date, comprehensive information on becoming a Licensed Practical Nurse in Maine, visit the Maine Board of Nursing’s website. Maine is a state that is part of the Nursing Licensure Compact (NLC), so nurses who have Maine licenses and reside in Maine can work in other states that part of the Compact. If an out-of-state nurse is licensed by their state, and their state is part of the Compact, that nurse may also work in Maine.
Practical nurse applicants in the state of Maine need to have successfully completed a practical nursing program. If the program is out-of-state, the applicant must provide a transcript from the program. Applicants need to complete an application and then get it notarized by a notary public, and provide payment for an application fee. There is a section on the application that the school the applicant graduated from for practical nursing must fill out and sign with the school’s seal. Applicants must also provide a passport-type 2-inch-by-2-inch photo of themselves that was taken within the last 2 years. Finally, applicants must pass the NCLEX for practical nursing.
The NCLEX-PN, or simply called the NCLEX, is a test that is very sensitive to each user; in other words, it picks questions for each user one at a time depending on how they answered the previous ones. One user may need to answer more than 200 questions while another may need to answer less than 100 questions (but number of questions asked is not indicative of success or failure). The exam is graded by judging applicants against a set standard, not against a minimum number of correct responses, which makes the NCLEX different from some other tests.
Colleges & Schools in Maine
Look below to see a list of schools where you might be able to find LPN schooling programs.
Central Maine Community College
1250 Turner St, Auburn, ME 04210
(207) 755-5100
Eastern Maine Community College
354 Hogan Road, Bangor, ME 04401
(207) 974-4600
Kennebec Valley Community College
92 Western Ave, Fairfield, ME 04937
(207) 453-5000
Northern Maine Community College
33 Edgemont Dr, Presque Isle, ME 04769
(207) 768-2700
Southern Maine Community College
2 Fort Rd, South Portland, ME 04106
(207) 741-5500
York County Community College
112 College Dr, Wells, ME 04090
(207) 646-9282
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