Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses: daily tasks & AI impact
This page breaks Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses into the top 15 daily O*NET tasks and scores each for Generative AI automation probability. Those task scores roll up to an overall vulnerability index of 17/100 (Lower automation risk). Struck-through rows are ≥80% automatable; highlighted safer rows are under 30% or primarily physical.
High-automation exposure
No task in this set currently exceeds the 80% threshold, so risk is spread across moderate probabilities rather than a few catastrophic duties.
Durable human work
This profile has little “safe” task mass under our thresholds. Workers should treat AI fluency as mandatory and actively map transferable skills into lower-risk roles.
Importance comes from O*NET incumbent ratings. Automation probability is model-generated for current Generative AI capability (not speculative AGI). Digital / physical / mixed labels describe the modality of the work, which strongly correlates with near-term automation potential.
| Task | Importance | AI probability | Nature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Observe patients, charting and reporting changes in patients' conditions, such as adverse reactions to medication or treatment, and taking any necessary action. Core | 4.66 | — | — |
| Measure and record patients' vital signs, such as height, weight, temperature, blood pressure, pulse, or respiration. Core | 4.55 | — | — |
| Administer prescribed medications or start intravenous fluids, noting times and amounts on patients' charts. Core | 4.48 | — | — |
| Provide basic patient care or treatments, such as taking temperatures or blood pressures, dressing wounds, treating bedsores, giving enemas or douches, rubbing with alcohol, massaging, or performing catheterizations. Core | 4.46 | — | — |
| Answer patients' calls and determine how to assist them. Core | 4.43 | — | — |
| Supervise nurses' aides or assistants. Core | 4.4 | — | — |
| Evaluate nursing intervention outcomes, conferring with other healthcare team members as necessary. Core | 4.34 | — | — |
| Work as part of a healthcare team to assess patient needs, plan and modify care, and implement interventions. Core | 4.25 | — | — |
| Record food and fluid intake and output. Core | 4.21 | — | — |
| Assemble and use equipment, such as catheters, tracheotomy tubes, or oxygen suppliers. Core | 4.21 | — | — |
| Collect samples, such as blood, urine, or sputum from patients, and perform routine laboratory tests on samples. Core | 4.17 | — | — |
| Prepare or examine food trays for conformance to prescribed diet. Core | 4.09 | — | — |
| Help patients with bathing, dressing, maintaining personal hygiene, moving in bed, or standing and walking. Core | 4.06 | — | — |
| Prepare patients for examinations, tests, or treatments and explain procedures. Core | 3.98 | — | — |
| Apply compresses, ice bags, or hot water bottles. Core | 3.97 | — | — |
What remains human
No tasks currently fall under the safe threshold for this occupation.
FAQ
Which Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses tasks are most exposed to AI?
No task in this set currently exceeds the 80% threshold, so risk is spread across moderate probabilities rather than a few catastrophic duties.
Which Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses tasks are safest from Generative AI?
This profile has little “safe” task mass under our thresholds. Workers should treat AI fluency as mandatory and actively map transferable skills into lower-risk roles.
How should I read the Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses task table?
Importance comes from O*NET incumbent ratings. Automation probability is model-generated for current Generative AI capability (not speculative AGI). Digital / physical / mixed labels describe the modality of the work, which strongly correlates with near-term automation potential.