LVN Job Description
What Does an LVN Do?
A licensed vocational nurse (LVN) is synonymous with a licensed practical nurse (LPN). Their day-to -day tasks revolve around caring for patients who have been admitted to the hospital due to illness. They take orders from their superiors, who are RNs (registered nurses) as well as physicians. Most of the daily tasks have to do with basic bedside care of the patients. These tasks include taking the patient’s temperatures and blood pressure; giving injections, changing wound dressings, and taking samples.
Working Conditions
LVNs do not have typical 9-5 working hours because patients need care around the clock, therefore they work a lot of night shifts as well as holiday and weekend shifts. Their jobs are also labor intensive; oftentimes they will have to help transfer patients. They also are on their feet for multiple hours a day and have to arrive at a patient’s bedside quickly at any moment’s notice. Their jobs are quite stressful, so they must be able to handle the fast pace and heavy pressure.
Education and Licensure
In order to become an LVN, one must go through a lot of education and training. Having a GED or high school degree is necessary before being accepted into a nursing program. The courses that are taken in a nursing program involve topics such as anatomy, biology, chemistry, and learning medical terms. Also while in nursing school, the students will participate in supervised patient care in a hospital setting. The whole program lasts for about a year, depending on where the education is taking place.
After nursing school is complete, the potential nurse must obtain a license and be certified to practice before being able to go out in the nursing field. The procedures for getting licensed are dependent upon the state in which the nurse lives, but involves taking an exam and is similar in the 50 states.
Basic Skills
The basic skills that an LVN will need to excel in this position include having patience, being able to have a work schedule that involves many hours and often overnight, and having a general passion for what they are doing. They need to be understanding of their patient’s needs and be able to provide comfort and reassurance and maintain proper bedside manner when dealing with them. Those nurses who do not like their profession will not be successful because having a good attitude is essential when being surrounded by illness and morbid surroundings.
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