2015 DNP

Specialties Doctoral

Published

Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.

I am wondering if anyone has heard any updates.

Everything I keep seeing online from the AACN is "recommendation", "strongly encouraged", "highly suggested".

I have yet to see anything, that says, "Look, either you graduate and pass your boards by January 1, 2015 or you can put the MSN you have in back of the closet and start working on your DNP, because the MSN isn't good enough anymore to sit for national certification."

There are many of us, including myself, that will be finishing probably in 2013 or 2014...now, we would all like to think that we would pass our certification the first go-round, but we all know that may or may not happen for some of us.

Example: You graduate in June 2014 with your MSN and it is January, 2015, you still cannot pass your certification exam...does that mean you have to go back to school or you cannot practice?

I have seen some colleges that have completely phased out MSN programs but I have seen MANY that have not...that makes me wonder if it is not going to be a "go" like they are claiming that it is.

I would love to hear from those that keep up with this sort of thing...that may have more insight.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Remember 30 years ago when "you have to have your BSN in order to be an RN?"

Well, I think this will be the same way - not worried in the least and think the lack of consistency with the DNP is going to be their downfall.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

Speaking from the NP perspective, it is still a recommendation and not an official mandate. That's just how it's going to unfold regardless of where you stand on the issue because as we all know, NP practice is regulated by the individual state boards as well as the multiple national specialty certification boards so change has to come from a collective effort from these entities. It is easier for other APN groups to set a deadline (such as CRNA's, for example) because their practice is more uniform and their training programs and certification are governed by a streamlined and unified entity unlike us NP's who seem to be more scattered (i.e., no formal accreditation specific to NP programs by a single entity and no unified national certification body).

The optimists feel that the speed at which DNP programs emerged is promising and the natural progression is that the DNP programs will outnumber the MS/MSN programs which may lead to the phasing out of the master's degree eventually regardless of a formal mandate. They compare it to the time when master's degrees for APN's started to pick up and the certificate programs naturally died out even though some states were still granting NP licenses to those trained at the certificate level. The pessimists feel that this is just a flashback of the "BSN-as-entry-to-nursing practice" issue and will never happen. I don't have an opinion as I'm happy with my current degree and have no immediate plans to return to school.

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Specializes in PACU, OR.

Ok, I'm not a student; no way, with 4 years before my official retirement would I even consider doing a degree. I'm proud of my diploma, and don't find that I have any knowledge deficit compared to RNs who have more recently qualified. However, this question has been juggling around in my head today, and I want to put it out there. The diploma course turned out nurses of a high standard every year. I know South Africa, Canada and Australia were specifically named as having excellent training courses. Yet even in the 70s, there was talk about "upgrading" the training.

So at what point, and for what reason, was it decided that "diplomas" were no longer good enough, and that prospective nurses had instead to enrol in expensive colleges and get degrees?

I won't comment on the quality of new grads in SA, because I've never worked with any of the "new college products", but the hearsay is scary....

Do you guys think it was worth working your butts off for degrees? And do you think this constant "metamorphosis" is improving nursing in direct proportion to the cost of training?

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Ok, I'm not a student; no way, with 4 years before my official retirement would I even consider doing a degree. I'm proud of my diploma, and don't find that I have any knowledge deficit compared to RNs who have more recently qualified. However, this question has been juggling around in my head today, and I want to put it out there. The diploma course turned out nurses of a high standard every year. I know South Africa, Canada and Australia were specifically named as having excellent training courses. Yet even in the 70s, there was talk about "upgrading" the training.

So at what point, and for what reason, was it decided that "diplomas" were no longer good enough, and that prospective nurses had instead to enrol in expensive colleges and get degrees?

I won't comment on the quality of new grads in SA, because I've never worked with any of the "new college products", but the hearsay is scary....

Do you guys think it was worth working your butts off for degrees? And do you think this constant "metamorphosis" is improving nursing in direct proportion to the cost of training?

This thread isn't about nurses entering in to RN practice. It's about becoming an advanced practitioner (nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, certified registered nurse anesthetist, etc) which requires (now) a masters degree....but the ANA is proposing to require a doctorate (DNP) to become an advanced practitioner.

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Specializes in PACU, OR.
This thread isn't about nurses entering in to RN practice. It's about becoming an advanced practitioner (nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, certified registered nurse anesthetist, etc) which requires (now) a masters degree....but the ANA is proposing to require a doctorate (DNP) to become an advanced practitioner.

Heh heh, yeah...I responded to a post in "what's new" and only realized after clicking "submit" that it was a speciality thread. But if you don't mind, please satisfy my curiosity a little further; we have sisters (RNs) who study further in certain specialities. For example, community health, occupational health, education, admin, etc. Is the NP training in specialities, or is it general?

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Heh heh, yeah...I responded to a post in "what's new" and only realized after clicking "submit" that it was a speciality thread. But if you don't mind, please satisfy my curiosity a little further; we have sisters (RNs) who study further in certain specialities. For example, community health, occupational health, education, admin, etc. Is the NP training in specialities, or is it general?

It is in one focused area. Some common ones are Family Nurse Practitioner (primary care), Adult Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, Nurse Midwife, or a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist.

I don't know of an NP specialty in community health (which doesn't mean it's not there, I just don't know about it) but have heard of RN's getting their MPH (Master's in Public Health). There are also masters degrees in nursing education....but neither of these are considered advanced practice roles.

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I wold thing that if the switch was made in 2015, it would have to be done so that NEW students just starting would have to be in a DNP program. Hopefully nurses aren't so short sighted as to say to people who are already students in master's program before 2015, here is your degree, its worthless, go back to school.

If it comes to pass that DNP is required, it will be after 2015 when all schools are DNP programs already. No nursing board is going to create a requirement that can't be met.

I don't think conversion to a DNP compares to bachelor's for entry practice at all. That has been a controversy for years. But that is just for entry level nursing, not advanced practice. And the nation is dependant on associate degree programs providing nurses for basic practice. MSN to DNP would not require closing many programs, and hopefully won't decrease the advanced practice working pool--I have my doubts though. How many part time students who are full time caregivers will be able to burden a year or more of school? Will the increased tuition deter them?

Most associate programs would have to close completely, until a major nurse surplus occurs this just isn't going to happen. With the aging population there will be nursing shortages for years to come. The advanced practice nurses are in a much more secure footing to make the switch, ADN to BSN nurses are not.

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I am wondering if anyone has heard any updates.

I have seen some colleges that have completely phased out MSN programs but I have seen MANY that have not...that makes me wonder if it is not going to be a "go" like they are claiming that it is.

.

Can you name the colleges that have no plans for a DNP? I have been looking for some like that, but haven't been able to find any. Every single one I have found has plans for a DNP. Are you saying that the MSN programs that still exist have no DNP plans? Or that just by the fact the MSN track still exists you assume they have no plans to replace it? I have reviewed probably over fifty programs in the last couple of months, and haven't found a single one without DNP plans. Thanks, I would love to find programs that aren't creating a DNP program. If all programs are creating DNP degrees, then it will be a go. I would love to find out if any school are refusing to even try to switch, that would support the theory it isn't going to happen.

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Specializes in FNP.

Can you name the colleges that have no plans for a DNP?

Actually some of the top ranked schools are not yet on board. Off the top of my head:

UPenn

UNC

Yale

UCSF

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

It's worth mentioning that when votes were cast by AACN member schools regarding the transition to DNP, many of the deans from the voting institutions weren't present. Makes you wonder if these were the schools who weren't in favor of the change.

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Can you name the colleges that have no plans for a DNP?

Actually some of the top ranked schools are not yet on board. Off the top of my head:

UPenn

UNC

Yale

UCSF

Yale plans on a program in next 2-3 years, which would be before 2015 http://nursing.yale.edu/Academics/DNP_FAQs.html

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