[inava]

This is my first entry after recently suscribing to this forum.

What I read in response to this query is the evidence of what's missing in
nursing: namely cohesion and collaboration. We should welcome each other into the profession no matter the road we took to get there. We all have to pass the same licensing exam therefore we all have met the requirements needed to practice. As a profession we have need for all levels of preparation. While bedside nurses care and advocate for clients, nurse executives need to care and advocate for them.


An RN for 27 years

[marilynmom]

Education is never overrated. I can't believe anyone would say that, what a shame on our profession.

I guess I'll add my thoughts to this as well, since everyone else has

One think I think is so silly is the whole debate over the "how much clinical time do you get?". Anyone can learn to do skills, they are NOT hard....I do IV's, foleys, central line draws, ABGs, NG tubes, injections,etc all day long. Skills just come from practice but there is nothing hard about any of them really. Now, I am NOT knocking clinical time whatsoever because it IS important, but it isn't the end all be all of your nursing education. If you see a student who has never done an IM maybe she/he just never got the chance, maybe she/he worked with RN who wouldn't let the students do much (I have worked with nurses like that), I mean who knows ...why not help out and teach? In my BSN program our junior year we get 12 hours clinical a week, senior year we get about 24 hours a week, preceptor ship is another 200 hours I think (somewhere around there). That is all fine and good and I really don't care how much your program gets because that doesn't affect me any, but it is not as important as my theory classes have been (pharm, phatho, critical care, gerontology, med/surg, etc etc etc etc). I can see this clearly now that I am working in an ICU. I really don't think my program is better or worse than anyone elses that is for sure.

I think knowing your disease process is soooo important! Being able to critically think when your patient is in resp distress (for example) is vital. I really could care less how fast you can put in a Foley or how many of them you have done, if (and I've seen this before!!) your patient has a K of 8 and having arrhythmias you better know what is going on, and what to do. Anytime me or anyone needs help with a skill, all you have to do is ask (some people as we know are better than others with IVs), but you really have to know your stuff and that doesn't necessarily come from time in clinical time while in school.

Also why do people knock classes like Leadership or Research or classes like that (I hear people on this site saying how stupid some of these "management" classes are)? Since when is education a bad thing? I don't get that at all. Nurses need to be more involved in things like research, every nurse needs to have spend some time critiquing research reports and being a leader (that is a sign of a professional no?). Nursing is so much more than skills. It just seems that so many students get so hung up on clinical hours where there is just sooo much more to it than that, and each floor is different in how they do skills anyways. Some floors you will never give an IM (we don't really in the ICU where I work or vary rarely).

If your smart and willing to learn, your going to be a great nurse! It is the nurses that come out of school thinking they know it all who scare me--not the nurses who come out of school with only putting in one foley!

But who knows maybe I am wrong about all this I just think nurses rock and that is the bottom line. I just wish people really knew a nurses education and what we did ya know?

[Kelly_the_Great]

Originally Posted by marilynmom

Also why do people knock classes like Leadership or Research or classes like that (I hear people on this site saying how stupid some of these "management" classes are)?

Yeah, Marilynmom, why do ppl do that? It's like they are playing right into the hands of those who would rather we be nothing but drones that just follow "orders," ya know?

Personally, I pursued the BSN so that if given the opportunity, I could advocate for nurses - ALL NURSES, w/o finding myself up against a closed door! Because I feel that we can't effectively help our patients unless we can help eachother.

I mean, I just got my RN license and am working as a new nurse to the hospital environment. And even now, just as I'm sure many of you do, I help my fellow nurses. It may be so small, like transcribing another nurses new meds on the MAR if I have time and she's totally overwhelmed or gettin' in there and helping clean a patient that needs it, whatever. But as opportunities increase, I will seize them any and every time I can further the support of my nursing colleagues.

[hoglover]

I am new to this site, but am proud to say that I just graduated from LPN school and am gearing up to take the NCLEX. I am currently trying to decide on whether I want to go to an LPN-BSN, or LPN-ADN. I have all of my prerequisites and am 37 years old. I dont want to waste time, but would like to get as much education as possible asap. I have spent 12 years in the Army and now amy ready for my nursing career. As for, why the debate and the backbiting? Come on you guys, we all know why! We are women! Im sorry, but I am a woman and I will be the first to admit that women are jealous, backbiting, two-faced, spiteful and down right mean to each other! Sad, but true. Situations like these are the only times that I EVER EVER EVER envy men!

[steelcityrn]

Education is not overrated, its important for your career. If your trying to say you do not need to have a bsn to be a good nurse, thats probably true. But no matter what your profession, education is important!