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Licensed Practical & Licensed Vocational Nurses

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

What they do:
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.
On the job, you would:
  • 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.
  • 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.

Knowledge

Health
  • medicine and dentistry
  • therapy and counseling
Business
  • customer service
  • management
Math and Science
  • psychology
  • arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics
Arts and Humanities
  • English language

Skills

Basic Skills
  • listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
  • talking to others
Problem Solving
  • noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Social
  • changing what is done based on other people's actions
  • looking for ways to help people

Abilities

Verbal
  • listen and understand what people say
  • communicate by speaking
Ideas and Logic
  • notice when problems happen
  • use rules to solve problems
Attention
  • pay attention to something without being distracted
  • do two or more things at the same time
Hand and Finger Use
  • keep your arm or hand steady

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include
helping people, teaching, and talking.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Dependability
  • Integrity
  • Attention to Detail
  • Concern for Others
  • Self Control
  • Cooperation

Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Medical software
  • Electronic medical record EMR software
  • Personal digital assistants PDA medical software
Spreadsheet software
Office suite software
  • Microsoft Office software

Education

Education: (rated 3 of 5)
some college or
associate's degree
usually needed

Get started on your career:

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Job Outlook

Bright Outlook
New job opportunities are very likely in the future.
Salary
$41,150
per year, on average
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See more details at O*NET OnLine about licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses.