Department of Defense

Practical Nurse (Intensive Care Unit)

Bethesda, Maryland Full time

Practical Nurse (Intensive Care Unit)

Department: Department of Defense

Location(s): Bethesda, Maryland

Salary Range: $56893 - $68530 Per Year

Job Summary: About the Position: The position is on a 23 bed medical surgical inpatient unit. 12-hour shifts with rotation day and night schedules required. Responsible for delivering safe, effective patient care to a diverse adult patient population under the supervision of a registered nurse. This is a Direct Hire Authority (DHA) solicitation utilizing the DHA for Certain Personnel of the DoD to recruit and appoint qualified candidates to positions in the competitive service.

Major Duties:

  • Perform patient assessments, accurately documenting findings in the electronic health record.
  • Obtain basic diagnostic data, including EKG and blood glucose monitoring.
  • Collect specimens and draw labs in accordance with policy and procedure.
  • Admit patients, transfers, and discharges, ensuring continuity of care.
  • Assist with patient mobility, including ambulation and repositioning every two hours.
  • Provide care to patient NG, wound VAC, PEG tube.
  • Verify intravenous drip in accordance to hospital policy.
  • Assist patients with ADLs; feeding and hygiene.
  • Monitor patient status and promptly report changes or concerns to the provider.
  • Maintain accurate, timely, and complete documentation of all care provided.

Qualifications: Who May Apply: US Citizens In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. 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; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document. Basic Requirement for Practical Nurse: Licensure: A current license to practice as a practical or vocational nurse in a State, territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia; OR must have applied for a license to practice. Applications of candidates possessing a license must be accompanied by a certified or photostatic copy of the license, a notarized statement attesting to the fact, or a citation of the license number and State issuing it. Non-licensed candidates who have completed their training may be appointed subject to obtaining the required license during the probationary period. Those not licensed must furnish the date on which they applied for a license and the jurisdiction involved. No person appointed pending licensure may be retained beyond the probationary period if licensure has not been attained. In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirement listed below: Experience: One year of nursing experience in a hospital, outpatient clinic, nursing home, or other supervised medical, nursing, or patient care facility that provided a practical knowledge of human body structure and sterile techniques and procedures, which includes duties such as: providing nursing care for critically ill patients, performing patient assessments and documenting findings in the electronic health record, assisting in resuscitation procedures, monitoring patient status and promptly reporting changes or concerns to the provider. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service. (GS-05). Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted.

How to Apply: To apply for this position, you must complete the online questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 05/01/2026to receive consideration. To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application (https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12943389). Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. As a reminder, your resume must be two pages or less and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. For additional information, refer to the 'Required Documents' section. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process. You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. Your resume selected in USAJOBS will be included, but you must re-select other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application may be incomplete. It is your responsibility to verify that your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) is complete, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan. Additional information on how to complete the online application process and submit your online application may be found on the USA Staffing Applicant Resource Center. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://www.usajobs.gov/applicant/profile/dashboard/), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/application/status.

Application Deadline: 2026-05-01