Licensed Practical Nurse Jobs in Virginia Beach, VA
Licensed practical nurses in Virginia Beach earn a metro median of about $31 an hour, and Sentara posts LPN pay up to $43 an hour at its city clinics. Below are the current openings, then who hires LPNs here, what it pays, and how to get licensed.
Current licensed practical nurse Openings in Virginia Beach, VA
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Licensed Practical Nurse Work in Virginia Beach
LPN work in Virginia Beach splits three ways. Sentara Health runs the hospital side from Sentara Virginia Beach General near Hilltop and Sentara Princess Anne Hospital off Dam Neck Road, and it staffs its family medicine and urgent care practices along Independence Boulevard with LPNs. Long-term care is the other big setting: skilled nursing units such as The Hoy Center at Westminster-Canterbury on Shore Drive and rehab centers across the city run around the clock and rely on practical nurses for medication passes and charge duties.
The third piece is pediatric and federal clinic work. CHKD places office LPNs across its Hampton Roads pediatric practices, and the Hampton VA Health Care System hires practical nurses for its ambulatory clinics, including Chesapeake. With NAS Oceana and JEB Little Creek-Fort Story in town, many applicants are military spouses, and Virginia's membership in the nurse licensure compact makes those moves easier.
Top Virginia Beach Employers for Licensed Practical Nurses
These are the hospitals, clinics and care communities that employ LPNs in and around Virginia Beach:
- Sentara Health - the city's largest private employer hires LPNs for its family medicine and urgent care practices, with posted pay of $28.57 to $43.04 an hour.
- Westminster-Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay - the Shore Drive life plan community staffs LPNs in The Hoy Center, its skilled nursing and memory care unit, on 12-hour day shifts.
- Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters (CHKD) - the regional children's system hires office LPNs for its pediatric practices across Hampton Roads.
- Virginia Beach Health & Rehab Center - the skilled nursing and rehab facility hires full-time LPNs for resident care.
- Hampton VA Health Care System - the federal system hires practical nurses for ambulatory care, including its Chesapeake clinic, through USAJobs.
Licensed Practical Nurse Salaries in Virginia Beach
- Entry level: about $24 to $28 an hour for new graduates, most often in long-term care.
- Experienced: roughly $29 to $35 an hour, which brackets the metro median near $31.
- Senior: $36 to $43 an hour for charge nurses and long-tenured clinic LPNs at the top of hospital-system pay scales.
These are estimates built from federal wage data for the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro and local postings. Night and weekend differentials, sign-on bonuses at Sentara, and federal GS steps at the VA move pay the most. Clinic jobs usually come with weekday hours, while skilled nursing runs 12-hour shifts that include every other weekend.
How to Become a Licensed Practical Nurse in Virginia Beach
Virginia licenses practical nurses through the Virginia Board of Nursing, part of the Department of Health Professions, and uses the title Licensed Practical Nurse, not LVN. You must finish a state-approved practical nursing program, pass a fingerprint background check, and pass the NCLEX-PN. Locally, Tidewater Community College runs its Practical Nursing Education certificate at the Virginia Beach Campus: three semesters, 45 credits, starting each spring, with a Sept. 30 application deadline and the ATI TEAS required. Nurses licensed in another compact state can work here on a multistate license.
What the Job Involves
LPNs work under registered nurses and physicians. A typical shift means taking vital signs, passing medications, giving injections, changing dressings, collecting specimens, documenting care in the electronic record, and reporting changes in a patient's condition. In long-term care you may supervise nursing assistants on a unit, while clinic LPNs room patients, give vaccines and handle prescription refill calls.
Skills Employers Look For
- Active Virginia or multistate compact LPN license
- Current BLS or CPR certification
- Safe medication administration and IV awareness
- Electronic health record charting, often Epic
- Long-term care or pediatric experience
- Calm communication with patients and families
- Ability to lead nursing assistants on a unit
Career Path and Advancement
Many Virginia Beach LPNs start in skilled nursing, move into a charge role, then shift to a hospital clinic or specialty practice. The biggest step is becoming a registered nurse: Tidewater Community College's associate degree program in Portsmouth offers an LPN-to-RN transition, and Old Dominion University's Ellmer School of Nursing at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center offers the BSN route.
Related Careers in Virginia Beach
If practical nursing interests you, these Virginia Beach guides cover close matches:
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it LPN or LVN in Virginia?
Virginia uses Licensed Practical Nurse. The Virginia Board of Nursing issues the license, and job postings in Virginia Beach list LPN as the requirement.
How much do LPNs make in Virginia Beach?
The metro median is about $31 an hour, or roughly $64,000 a year. New graduates often start around $24 to $28, and experienced LPNs at hospital systems can reach the low $40s per hour.
How long does LPN school take in Virginia Beach?
Tidewater Community College's Practical Nursing Education certificate at the Virginia Beach Campus takes three semesters. Classes start in spring, and the application deadline is Sept. 30, so plan about a year ahead.
Can I work in Virginia Beach with an LPN license from another state?
Yes. Virginia is in the nurse licensure compact, so a multistate license from another compact state is valid here. Nurses from non-compact states apply to the Virginia Board of Nursing for licensure by endorsement.
Where do LPNs work in Virginia Beach?
LPNs here work in skilled nursing and long-term care, in physician practices and urgent care centers run by Sentara and CHKD, and in federal clinics with the Hampton VA. The VA jobs are a common choice for veterans and military spouses.
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