Licensed practical nurse

A day in the job

On a medical or long-term care unit you take report, look after a group of residents or patients, give medications and treatments, do dressings, record changes and report them. LPNs often lead the health care aides on a unit.

Where you could work: Long-term care, hospitals, home care, clinics

How to get there

1. Complete an approved two-year Practical Nurse diploma
2. Programs are offered at colleges and polytechnics across Alberta

Alberta schools: NorQuest College (opens in a new tab), Bow Valley College (opens in a new tab), Lethbridge Polytechnic (opens in a new tab), Medicine Hat College (opens in a new tab), Red Deer Polytechnic (opens in a new tab), Portage College (opens in a new tab)

Licence and registration

1. Pass the Canadian Practical Nurse Registration Exam (CPNRE)
2. Register with the College of Licensed Health Professionals of Alberta (CLHA)
3. Renew every year

Official starting point: College of Licensed Health Professionals of Alberta (opens in a new tab)

Trained outside Canada?

Nurses educated outside Canada usually start with the National Nursing Assessment Service (NNAS), then apply to the CLHA; approved applicants can get provisional registration to work under supervision while they wait to write the CPNRE.