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OaSIS 2025 Version 1.0
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32101.01 – Licensed practical nurses

Licensed practical nurses provide nursing care usually under the direction of medical practitioners, registered nurses or other health team members.

Overview

Example job titles

  • Licensed practical nurse (L.P.N.)
  • Registered nursing assistant (R.N.A.)
  • Registered practical nurse (R.P.N.)

Core competencies

  • Oral Communication: Active Listening to enhance patient care, ensure patient concerns are heard and addressed, confirm accurate information, foster strong professional relationships and promote a supportive environment
  • Social Perceptiveness to instruct patients and their families on steps to promote recovery and healing following discharge by providing safety and health education
  • Stamina to maintain focus, provide consistent care and handle the physical demands without compromising patient safety
  • Memorizing to accurately recall medication names, dosages and administration procedures when giving prescribed drugs or starting intravenous fluids
  • Attention to Detail to carefully evaluate the effectiveness of nursing interventions and precisely administer medication
  • Knowledge in Physical Health to accurately monitor and assess patient conditions, implement care plans safely, collaborate with healthcare teams, educate patients and stay updated with medical advancements for improved patient outcomes

Main duties

This group performs some or all of the following duties:

  • Provide nursing services, within defined scope of practice, to patients based on patient assessment and care planning procedures
  • Perform nursing interventions such as taking vital signs, applying aseptic techniques including sterile dressing, ensuring infection control, monitoring nutritional intake and conducting specimen collection
  • Administer medication and observe and document therapeutic effects
  • Provide pre-operative and post-operative personal and comfort care
  • Monitor established respiratory therapy and intravenous therapy
  • Monitor patients' progress, evaluate and document effectiveness of nursing interventions and collaborate with appropriate members of health care team
  • Provide safety and health education to individuals and their families.

Additional information

  • Working under the direction of a medical practitioner or registered nurse is not required for licensed practical nurses in all jurisdictions.

Similar occupations classified elsewhere

Exclusions:

  • Home support workers, caregivers and related occupations (44101)
  • Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates (33102)

NOC hierarchy breakdown

NOC version

NOC 2021 Version 1.0

Broad occupational category

3 – Health occupations

TEER

2 – Occupations usually require a college diploma or apprenticeship training of two or more years; or supervisory occupations

Major group

32 – Technical occupations in health

Sub-major group

321 – Technical occupations in health (except practitioners of natural healing)

Minor group

3210 – Technical occupations in therapy and assessment

Unit group

32101 – Licensed practical nurses

Occupational profile

32101.01 – Licensed practical nurses

O*NET in-it

This page includes information from the O*NET 27.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Employment and Social Development Canada has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.