Lisa Morell, LPN, didn't realize the effort it was going to take to convince people that experienced LPNs should be permitted to sit for the RN licensure exam.

She surely does now. So, she's taking a new approach.

Morell, an LPN who lives and works in Connecticut, launched a personal campaign last year, promoting the idea that practical nurses should be allowed to "test out" for RN licensure as opposed to having to return to the classroom to earn their degrees.

Her efforts resulted in more than 500 signatures from LPNs and RNs across the country supporting the initiative. Today, she's trying to find the lobbying support and necessary research to push her proposal to the next level.

"With all the talk of nursing shortages and cries for more public healthcare, I figured the time was right [last year] to make a change," she said. "And I think it still is. But I realize now I can't do this alone."

A Year Later
In June 2008, ADVANCE reported on Morell's initiative ("Testing the Waters," Vol. 8 No. 6). Back then, she was excited about the more than 150 signatures she had accumulated through an ongoing online petition (www.petitiononline.com/lps2t/petition.html).

The growing support boosted Morell's hope that the nursing community would seriously consider the idea.

She sites lack of LPN-to-RN articulation nursing programs and the increasing use of unlicensed medical personnel in hospitals as the basis for her endeavors. The perception among LPNs, she said, is hospital administrators are more interested in employing medical technicians because their paths from education to work are traditionally shorter, they aren't governed by the nursing board and they command lower salaries.

"LPNs are getting fired and med techs are taking over their positions because there are not enough RNs to do so because of the nursing shortage," Morell explained. "If you're an LPN who wants to get your RN to save your job, you have to take prerequisites and there are a lot of costs and time involved. It's like the colleges just want their money and that's it."

Despite the hundreds of online signatures, Morell's admittedly not as enthusiastic about her prospects. Still, she's sought the guidance this summer of NFLPN president Missy Moore, LPN, WCC. While Moore emphasized she couldn't speak for NFLPN on this topic, she told ADVANCE she personally supports Morell's idea and would be willing to connect her with appropriate agencies and associations who could assist her in devising an educational program to make the LPN-to-RN transition easier for practical nurses.

The idea, Morell said, is to develop a program that would allow LPNs with 10 or more years of experience to perform a series of competencies that, if passed, would earn them RN licensure.

"But she needs a reasonable, well-thought-out plan so she can get someone at NFLPN, the board or an educational institution to listen to her," Moore said.

An Educational Endeavour
Morell plans to write an official proposal to the NFLPN board of directors and other possible "parties of interest" to request financial and/or moral support. She said her first step will be to research the LPN-to-RN programs in her state and compile data showing the number of enrolled LPNs who actually earn their RN and the average length of time it takes to do so. Morell also plans to research medical technician programs and compare them to practical nursing curriculums to gauge similarities that could warrant nursing board supervision of these staff members.

"It's not like I'm trying to get rid of LPNs - that's not my point," she said. "I just think it should be easier for LPNs to get their RN, if that's what they want."