Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses Onet SOC Code 29-2061.00 Career Description: Care for ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled persons in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, private homes, group homes, and similar institutions. May work under the supervision of a registered nurse. Licensing required. Related Clusters:

Career Summary:

• Observe patients, charting and reporting changes in patients' conditions, such as adverse reactions to medication or treatment, and taking any necessary action.
• Administer prescribed medications or start intravenous fluids, and note times and amounts on patients' charts.
• Answer patients' calls and determine how to assist them.
• Measure and record patients' vital signs, such as height, weight, temperature, blood pressure, pulse and respiration.
• Provide basic patient care and treatments, such as taking temperatures or blood pressures, dressing wounds, treating bedsores, giving enemas or douches, rubbing with alcohol, massaging, or performing catheterizations.
• Help patients with bathing, dressing, maintaining personal hygiene, moving in bed, or standing and walking.
• Supervise nurses' aides and assistants.
• Work as part of a health care team to assess patient needs, plan and modify care and implement interventions.
• Record food and fluid intake and output.
• Evaluate nursing intervention outcomes, conferring with other health care team members as necessary.
• Assemble and use equipment such as catheters, tracheotomy tubes, and oxygen suppliers.
• Collect samples such as blood, urine and sputum from patients, and perform routine laboratory tests on samples.
• Prepare patients for examinations, tests or treatments and explain procedures.
• Prepare food trays and examine them for conformance to prescribed diet.
• Apply compresses, ice bags, and hot water bottles.
• Clean rooms and make beds.
• Inventory and requisition supplies and instruments.
• Provide medical treatment and personal care to patients in private home settings, such as cooking, keeping rooms orderly, seeing that patients are comfortable and in good spirits, and instructing family members in simple nursing tasks.
• Sterilize equipment and supplies, using germicides, sterilizer, or autoclave.
• Assist in delivery, care, and feeding of infants.
• Wash and dress bodies of deceased persons.
• Make appointments, keep records and perform other clerical duties in doctors' offices and clinics.
• Set up equipment and prepare medical treatment rooms.

• 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.
• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• 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.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• 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.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• 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.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

• To become a licensed practical nurse, a student must have a high school diploma or the equivalent. Most Tennessee technology centers and a few private schools offer a twelve-month course in this health care field. Programs combine clinical experience and classroom instruction. While in the clinical area, students are supervised by an instructor while they care for hospital or nursing home patients. Classroom instruction includes anatomy, physiology, nutrition, nursing principles, and ethics. Upon satisfactory completion of the course, graduates take the Tennessee Board of Nursing examination to become a licensed practical nurse. Licensed practical nurses who wish to become registered nurses may enroll in a "bridging" program that allows them to have advanced standing in an RN program. For related information and recommended courses to prepare for this occupation, Tennessee high school students may visit the Health Science Education Curriculum Standards online.

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Science - Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
• Equipment Selection - Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
• Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.

• 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.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Speed of Closure - The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

• Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
• Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
• Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
• Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
• Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
• 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.
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

• Social - Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
• Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
• Investigative - Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

• Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
• Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
• Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
• Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
• Self Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
• Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
• Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
• Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
• Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
• Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
• Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
• Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
• Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
• Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
• Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

• Social Service - Workers on this job have work where they do things for other people.
• Co-workers - Workers on this job have co-workers who are easy to get along with.
• Relationships-Mean Extent - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
• Achievement - Workers on this job get a feeling of accomplishment.
• Achievement-Mean Extent - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
• Ability Utilization - Workers on this job make use of their individual abilities.
• Activity - Workers on this job are busy all the time.
• Security - Workers on this job have steady employment.
• Social Status - Workers on this job are looked up to by others in their company and their community.
• Moral Values - Workers on this job are never pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

Wage and salary data provided by:

• Bureau of Labor Statistics, Tennessee Department of Labor website
• TN Department of Labor & Workforce Development website
• Bureau of Economic Analysis website