Licensed practical nurses (LPNs) deliver hands-on patient care across a wide range of healthcare settings. Their work centers on monitoring patients, administering medications, performing wound care, and supporting the broader nursing team. The median annual wage for LPNs was $62,340 in May 2024, and the role serves as both a standalone career and a launching point toward becoming a registered nurse.
Core Clinical Duties
The backbone of LPN work is direct patient care. On a typical shift, you’ll gather and record assessment data: vital signs, symptoms, changes in a patient’s condition. You observe, monitor, and report these findings on an ongoing basis to a supervising registered nurse or physician. This continuous monitoring role is critical because LPNs are often the ones spending the most time at the bedside, catching early signs that a patient’s condition is shifting.
Beyond observation, LPNs carry out a wide range of clinical tasks. Wound care is a major one. LPNs assess wounds, perform basic and advanced wound care, change dressings, and in some settings even perform conservative sharp debridement of dead tissue, provided they have the proper training and demonstrated proficiency. Catheter care, including changing suprapubic catheters, also falls within the LPN scope of practice. You’ll help implement the care plan developed by the RN or physician, contribute to modifying it as needed, and participate in evaluating whether treatments are working.
Medication Administration
LPNs administer most medications that patients receive on a daily basis. This includes oral medications (pills, liquids) and intramuscular injections. When giving an injection, you’re responsible for documenting the exact site on the body where it was administered.
The major restriction involves intravenous (IV) medications. In most states, IV infusion medications must be given by an RN. However, this varies by state. New York, for instance, allows LPNs to provide IV therapy services after completing specialized training that includes supervised clinical experience and competency assessments. LPNs in New York who do IV work must also complete refresher training at least annually and work under the onsite supervision of an RN, nurse practitioner, physician, or other authorized clinician. Checking your own state’s nurse practice act is essential, because IV therapy rules differ significantly from one state to the next.
Where LPNs Work
Long-term care and skilled nursing facilities employ the largest share of LPNs. In these settings, you’re often the primary nurse on the floor, managing medications for multiple residents, monitoring chronic conditions like diabetes or heart failure, coordinating with physicians during rounds, and overseeing certified nursing assistants.
Hospitals employ LPNs too, though the role is more narrowly defined. You’ll typically assist RNs with patient care on medical-surgical floors, help with admissions and discharges, and handle routine monitoring. Clinics and physician offices are another common setting, where LPNs take patient histories, prepare patients for exams, administer vaccinations, and handle basic lab work. Home health is a growing area as well. LPNs providing home care deliver wound care, manage medication schedules, and serve as the eyes and ears for the supervising RN or physician between visits.
Supervision Requirements
LPNs do not practice independently. Every state requires that an LPN work under clinical supervision, though what that looks like varies by setting. In most cases, a registered nurse provides that supervision. When no RN is present or required by law, a physician, nurse practitioner, physician assistant, or dentist (for dental patients) can fill that supervisory role.
Supervision doesn’t necessarily mean someone standing over your shoulder. In a nursing home, for example, the supervising RN may be elsewhere in the building while you carry out care on your unit. But the RN must be available to intervene, answer clinical questions, and review your work. The supervising clinician remains responsible for ensuring your assignments match your scope of practice and abilities. One firm rule across all states: a non-RN (such as another LPN) can never supervise or manage the clinical performance of a licensed nurse.
How LPN Duties Differ From RN Duties
The simplest way to understand the distinction is that RNs lead the care plan while LPNs carry it out. RNs perform the initial comprehensive assessment, develop the nursing diagnosis, create the care plan, and make independent clinical judgments. LPNs contribute to assessments by gathering data and reporting observations, but the analysis and planning decisions rest with the RN.
In practice, this means an LPN might notice that a patient’s blood pressure has dropped and their skin looks pale, then immediately report it to the RN. The RN decides what to do next, whether that means adjusting fluids, calling the physician, or ordering additional tests. LPNs also cannot delegate tasks to RNs, though they can delegate certain nursing activities to unlicensed assistive personnel within their own scope.
How to Become an LPN
LPN programs typically take about 12 months to complete and are offered at community colleges, vocational schools, and some hospitals. The curriculum covers anatomy, pharmacology, nutrition, and hands-on clinical rotations. After graduating from an approved program, you must pass the NCLEX-PN exam to earn your license.
The NCLEX-PN is a computerized adaptive test, meaning the difficulty of each question adjusts based on how you answered the previous one. You’ll answer between 85 and 150 questions within a five-hour window. The test covers coordinated care (18 to 24% of questions), safety and infection control (10 to 16%), pharmacology (10 to 16%), and several other clinical categories. About 18 of the questions come as case studies that measure clinical judgment. The computer stops once it’s 95% confident you’ve performed above or below the passing standard, so many test-takers finish well before hitting the maximum number of questions.
Career Growth and Advancement
Many LPNs use the role as a stepping stone toward becoming an RN. LPN-to-ADN (Associate Degree in Nursing) bridge programs let you transfer credits from your LPN education, shortening the path considerably. With maximum transfer credits, some programs can be completed in as little as 12 months. Without those extra credits, expect closer to 17 months for the associate degree.
If you want to go further, LPN-to-BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) programs exist as well. These take longer, ranging from about 34 months at an accelerated pace to 49 months for a working professional schedule. Both paths require completing roughly 120 credits total for the BSN. A bachelor’s degree opens doors to leadership roles, specialty nursing, and eventually graduate programs if you’re interested in becoming a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist.
Employment for LPNs is projected to grow 3% from 2024 to 2034, roughly in line with the average for all occupations. The aging population and expansion of long-term care facilities continue to drive steady demand, particularly outside of hospital settings where LPNs take on broader day-to-day responsibilities.