Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurse

Also called: Charge Nurse, Clinic Licensed Practical Nurse (CLINIC LPN), Clinic Nurse, Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), Licensed Practical Nurse, Clinic Nurse (LPN, Clinic Nurse)

Varies

estimated salary

Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses care for ill, injured, or convalescing patients or persons with disabilities in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, private homes, group homes, and similar institutions. May work under the supervision of a registered nurse. Licensing required.

 

 

  • Administer prescribed medications or start intravenous fluids, noting times and amounts on patients' charts.
  • Observe patients, charting and reporting changes in patients' conditions, such as adverse reactions to medication or treatment, and taking any necessary action.
  • Answer patients' calls and determine how to assist them.
  • Measure and record patients' vital signs, such as height, weight, temperature, blood pressure, pulse, or respiration.
  • Provide basic patient care or treatments, such as taking temperatures or blood pressures, dressing wounds, treating bedsores, giving enemas or douches, rubbing with alcohol, massaging, or performing catheterizations.
  • Work as part of a healthcare team to assess patient needs, plan and modify care, and implement interventions.
  • Supervise nurses' aides or assistants.
  • Evaluate nursing intervention outcomes, conferring with other healthcare team members as necessary.
  • Assemble and use equipment, such as catheters, tracheotomy tubes, or oxygen suppliers.
  • Record food and fluid intake and output.
  • Collect samples, such as blood, urine, or sputum from patients, and perform routine laboratory tests on samples.
  • Prepare patients for examinations, tests, or treatments and explain procedures.
  • Help patients with bathing, dressing, maintaining personal hygiene, moving in bed, or standing and walking.
  • Apply compresses, ice bags, or hot water bottles.
  • Sterilize equipment and supplies, using germicides, sterilizer, or autoclave.
  • Make appointments, keep records, or perform other clerical duties in doctors' offices or clinics.
  • Provide medical treatment or personal care to patients in private home settings, such as cooking, keeping rooms orderly, seeing that patients are comfortable and in good spirits, or instructing family members in simple nursing tasks.
  • Set up equipment and prepare medical treatment rooms.
  • Prepare or examine food trays for conformance to prescribed diet.
  • Wash and dress bodies of deceased persons.
  • Inventory and requisition supplies and instruments.
  • Clean rooms and make beds.
  • Assist in delivery, care, or feeding of infants.
Work Context
  • Face-to-Face Discussions — 95% responded "Every day".
  • Contact With Others — 91% responded "Constant contact with others".
  • Telephone — 85% responded "Every day".
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 82% responded "Extremely important".
  • Exposed to Disease or Infections — 87% responded "Every day".
  • Work With Work Group or Team — 80% responded "Extremely important".
  • Physical Proximity — 70% responded "Very close (near touching)".
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Work Activities
  • Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
  • Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
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Detailed Work Activities
  • Monitor patient conditions during treatments, procedures, or activities.
  • Record patient medical histories.
  • Record patient medical histories.
  • Administer intravenous medications.
  • Measure the physical or physiological attributes of patients.
  • Record patient medical histories.
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Knowledge

Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
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Skills

Service Orientation
  • Actively looking for ways to help people.
Reading Comprehension
  • Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Time Management
  • Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Coordination
  • Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
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Abilities

Oral Comprehension
  • The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Speech Clarity
  • The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Problem Sensitivity
  • The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Oral Expression
  • The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
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Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Achievement/Effort
  • Persistence
  • Initiative
  • Leadership
  • Cooperation
  • Concern for Others
  • Social Orientation
  • Self Control
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Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Video creation and editing software
  • YouTube Hot Technology
Word processing software
  • Microsoft Word Hot Technology
  • Word processing software
Operating system software
  • Microsoft Windows Hot Technology
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