Licensed Practical Nurse

Summary

The Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) performs tasks and responsibilities within the scope of supportive and restorative care, medication administration, and specialized tasks under the direction of a Registered Professional Nurse or licensed or otherwise legally authorized physician or dentist.

• Delivers nursing care in structured and routine situations free of scientific complexity.
• Assists with activities of daily living.
• Administers treatments and routine tasks such as suctioning and urinary catheterizations.
• Prepares patients for surgery, diagnostic tests, treatments, and examinations.
• Administers medications within scope of practice.
• Collects, labels, and processes specimens accurately.
• Identifies and sets up intravenous equipment and delivers solutions for infusion through peripheral access devices.
• Administers blood or blood products with special training.
• Reports pertinent observations, treatments, medications, incidents, and accidents associated with patients to the Registered Professional Nurse and records the same on appropriate documents using the charting format utilized in the unit.
• Recognizes the unit-based model for delivery of nursing care and assumes responsibility for assignments delegated by the Registered Professional Nurse, including:
• Contributes to the nursing care plan in collaboration with other members of the nursing staff.
• Reinforces the patient/family teaching process identified by the RN.
• Provides emotional support to patients and their families/significant others.
• Assists with the rehabilitation of patients according to the nursing care plan.
• Provides for the physical comfort and safety of the patient.
• Contributes to patient care conferences.
• Assists in emergency resuscitative procedures by initiating a Team 7000 call, performing resuscitative procedures such as BCLS, and carrying out other activities as directed by the team.
• Documents nursing care delivered on appropriate forms within the medical record.

• Completion of educational program for licensure as an LPN.
• Successful completion of required New York State Department of Health LPN IV Therapy Initial Program for the demonstration of competence in the performance of intravenous therapy/blood administration procedures as part of Centralized Orientation.
• Successful completion of annual unit-based review and update program in procedures associated with intravenous therapy.

• LPN — Issuing Agency:
  New York State Department of Health.
• Basic Life Saver (BLS) — Issuing Agency: AHA.

• Nursing care in structured and routine situations.
• Activities of daily living assistance.
• Urinary catheterizations.
• Patient preparation for surgery, diagnostic tests, treatments, and examinations.
• Medication administration within scope of practice.
• Specimen collection, labeling, and processing.
• Intravenous equipment setup and peripheral access infusion.
• Blood or blood product administration with special training.