Licensed practical nurses

Licensed practical nurses

NOC
32101

provide care for patients under the direction of doctors and registered nurses. They work in health care settings, such as hospitals, clinics and private homes.

Quick facts

3-Year Outlook

Very Good
Very Good

3-Year Job Openings

463
 

Median Hourly Wage

$25.00
$21.50
Low
$26.67
High

Average Salary

$51,160
 

Typically Required

College or apprenticeship

Employed

2,977
 
Job details

Full NOC Description

Licensed practical nurses provide nursing care usually under the direction of medical practitioners, registered nurses or other health team members. Operating room technicians prepare patients and provide assistance to medical practitioners prior to and during surgery. Licensed practical nurses are employed in hospitals, nursing homes, extended care facilities, rehabilitation centres, doctors' offices, clinics, companies, private homes and community health centres. Operating room technicians are employed in hospitals.

Main Duties

This group performs some or all of the following duties:
 

Licensed practical nurses

  • 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.

Operating room technicians

  • Prepare patients for surgery by washing, shaving and sterilizing the patients' operative areas
  • Assist in surgery by laying out instruments, setting up equipment, assisting surgical teams with gowns and gloves and passing instruments to surgeons
  • Monitor patients' status during surgery, such as intake, output and loss of blood, and communicate and document any changes
  • Clean and sterilize the operating room and instruments.

Also Known As

  • graduate nursing assistant
  • licensed practical nurse (LPN)
  • operating room technician
  • registered nursing assistant (RNA)
Requirements

Employment Requirements

  • Completion of a vocational, college or other approved program for licensed practical nurses is required.
  • Registration with a regulatory body is required in all provinces and territories.
  • Completion of a registration examination is required in all provinces and territories.
  • Operating room technicians require additional academic training in operating room techniques.

Provincial Regulation

  • Provincially Regulated: Yes
Employment by Sex

The following graph shows the percentage of men and women working in this occupation in New Brunswick.

Data legend

89.9%
Female
10.1%
Male
Employment by age

The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick by age group.

Data legend

8.2%
15-24
26.7%
25-34
28.0%
35-44
21.9%
45-54
14.5%
55-64
0.8%
65+
Employment by highest level of education

The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick by highest level of education achieved.

Data legend

0.0%
No Certificate, Diploma or Degree
2.7%
High School, Diploma or Equivalent
4.4%
Apprenticeship or Trades Certificate or Diploma
86.5%
College or University Below Bachelor Level
6.5%
University - Bachelor Level or Above
Employment by Industry

The following graph shows the industry groups in which the largest shares of persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick are employed. Small percentages for all top three industry groups may suggest employment for this occupation is widely distributed amongst many industry groups.

Data legend

96.2%
Health care and social assistance
1.1%
Retail trade
1.1%
Public administration
1.5%
All Other Industries
Employment by Economic Regions

The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons employed in this occupation in New Brunswick by which economic region they reside in.

Data legend

24.10%
Northeast
22.00%
Southeast
26.40%
Southwest
16.90%
Central
10.60%
Northwest
Province of New Brunswick Economic Regions

Economic Regions

The following map displays New Brunswick’s five economic regions. An economic region (ER) is a grouping of counties, created as a standard unit for analysis of regional economic activity across Canada.

Annual Average Salary by Economic Regions

The following graph shows the average salary of all persons employed in this occupation in each of New Brunswick’s five economic regions.

Data legend

$52,000
Northeast
$51,600
Southeast
$50,800
Southwest
$50,800
Central
$49,600
Northwest
Province of New Brunswick Economic Regions

Economic Regions

The following map displays New Brunswick’s five economic regions. An economic region (ER) is a grouping of counties, created as a standard unit for analysis of regional economic activity across Canada.

Hourly Median Wages by Economic Regions

The following represents the median hourly wage of all persons employed in this occupation in each of New Brunswick’s five economic regions.

Northeast

$25.00
$21.50
Low
$26.88
High

Southeast

$24.65
$20.00
Low
$25.03
High

Southwest

$25.03
$24.00
Low
$26.80
High

Central

$25.00
$23.00
Low
$26.38
High

Northwest

$25.00
$23.25
Low
$26.69
High
Salary

The following shows the average salary of everyone who worked full-time and year-round in this occupation across each of the Atlantic Provinces and nationally.

New Brunswick

$51,160

Newfoundland

$58,000

Prince Edward Island

$53,600

Nova Scotia

$65,000

Canada

$63,150
Employment Outlook

The following represents the number of job openings that are expected to occur in this occupation over the next three and ten years respectively, broken down by openings expected to result from growth (“new jobs”) and openings expected to result from attrition (death and retirements).

Three Year Outlook

Total Openings: 3-Year

463
 

New Jobs: 3-Year

281
 

Retirements/Deaths: 3-Year

182
 

Ten Year Outlook

Total Openings: 10-Year

1,276
 

New Jobs: 10-Year

605
 

Retirements/Deaths: 10-Year

668