Licensed Practical Nurse - Community Living Center

Summary

This Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) position is located within the VA Community Living Center (CLC) at Wilmington VA Medical Center, Wilmington, DE. The LPN assigned to the CLC is an active member of a multidisciplinary healthcare team that provides care to Veterans at the Wilmington VAMC. The GS-7 LPN must demonstrate an exceptional degree of practical nursing knowledge and skills necessary for concentrated effort and self-direction to provide care for a medically complex Veteran population.

Duties

The CLC LPN is accountable for delivering resident care to the adult/geriatric resident population with varying diagnoses and treatments. He/she carries out assignments under the direction and supervision of the registered nurse. The LPN exercises judgment within the scope of training and experience. The work involves a sequence of duties requiring the employee to set priorities and determine the proper nursing procedures. The CLC provides care to resident's needing skilled nursing and rehabilitation services including those needing complex wound care and wound VAC therapy, intravenous (IV) antibiotics, and medications, enteral feeding via percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tubes, and jejunostomy (J) tubes, respiratory treatments and pulmonary supported care including CP AP and BiPAP for sleep apnea diagnosis's, monitoring glucoses in brittle diabetics, and support for those needing comfort and end of life care, as well as providing restorative services, long term maintenance care, hospice and palliative care and respite caregiver relief care. The Veteran population may be managed for a variety of illnesses including, though not limited to surgical follow up care, oncology syndromes, traumatic brain injury, psychiatric diagnoses, chronic lung diseases, chronic renal failure, diabetes and diabetic wounds, complex wound care, cardiac disease including coronary disease, infarction, congestive heart failure, vascular disease, strokes, sequelae, neurologic injury, dysphagia, impaired speech, infectious diseases, and new/complex ostomy care. Duties include, but are not limited to: Prepare and administer prescribed medications (oral, topical, subcutaneous, Intramuscular, and/or intravenous) and performs treatments according to established policies/procedures. The LPN/L VN observes for physical and/or emotional changes in patient's health condition, which may include prescribed medications/treatments, to promptly and accurately documenting identified changes, and reporting any deviations from normal to RN/HCP. Promote and demonstrate nursing concepts in the Medical Center. Works in collaboration with the Registered Nurse (RN), and or Health Care Provider (HCP). Support the team in monitoring the practice of unlicensed nursing staff or non-medical staff to ensure safe patient care delivery. Function independently as the Team Leader, with limited supervision of the charge nurse, for a designated group of residents. May assist with charge nurse responsibilities in the Community Living Center. Perform nursing care to the unit's Veterans, including all aspects of personal care and grooming and perform rehabilitative and restorative nursing care as applicable. Independently provide accurate observations and documentation for new admissions, post-procedures, immediate post-operative, post-traumatic, and/or unstable residents. Take appropriate action in emergent situations both physical and behavioral. He/she will exhibit high level functioning in the ability to quickly take action to promote the safety and health of all residents on the unit. Conduct routine rounds throughout the shift on a designated group of residents. He/she will evaluate and observe residents' levels of acuity and communicate/report changes in acuity level to the covering RN and/or provider. Assist with the coordination of transfers of residents to a more acute level of care as applicable, which includes hand-off communication to the receiving unit. Exercise skill in influencing and communicating with unusually difficult to care for residents and communicates appropriately with family members. This includes the ability to effectively address residents with various medical and psychiatric conditions. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 11:30 pm to 8:00 am w/ every other weekend, and rotating holidays. Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year). Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA. Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement). Telework: Not Available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement # 460-06234-F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. VA Careers - Licensed Practical Nurse: https://youtube.com/embed/Ae85IP1Oiz4 Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications and evaluation

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

How to apply

All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 08/20/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13029951. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.

Required documents

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: Resume Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field. Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field. The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc. Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (Schedule A) Disability Letter (VA) License Other (1) Performance Appraisal Professional Certification Resume SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript

Additional information

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.