[wannabebabyRN]

Hi I am a senior in high school and am on the waiting list for sandhills for an associate degree in nursing. I want to become a nurse to later be in the NICU. Is an ADN a good idea or should i go to a 4 year college for my BSN?

[llg]

There are lots of different perspectives on this question -- a question that has been asked many times.

I think the bottom line is that an ADN is just fine to begin your career in nursing, but it is not enough to get promotions to higher level positions. The trend over the years (as health care has become more complex) is to require an increasing amount of education for nurses, not less. So ... most young people entering the field today are going to find themselves with fewer job opportunities unless they have a higher education.

So ... there is nothing wrong with starting with your ADN, but understand that it is only the first step in your nursing education and that you will probably have to make plans (time and finances) to go back to school for a higher degree. That is not as easy as it sounds because it gets tough to go back to school once you are married, have kids, a mortgage, etc. Some people find it easier to go to a 4-year program and "do it all at once" while they are young and don't have a family to take care of. They often end up with large student loans, but they find it easier to work a couple of extra shifts per month to pay back the loans than it is to get the ADN and then try to go to school while they are working night shifts, etc.

Good luck,
llg

[bergren]

This just came out,

CNN.com - Study: Nursing education, death rates linked - Sep. 24, 2003

http://www.cnn.com/2003/HEALTH/09/24/educated.nurses.ap/index.html

In a review of data from 168 Pennsylvania hospitals, surgery patients' death rates were nearly twice as high when the percentage of nurses with bachelor's degrees was low, University of Pennsylvania researchers said.

Low levels of education, coupled with low nurse staffing levels, could translate to thousands of preventable deaths nationwide each year, the researchers said.

[TeenyBabyRN]

I find it just a wee bit fishy that a few extra courses in art, literature, and history make for a better nurse. I guarantee that if nurse/patient ratios were examined, much more useful and accurate information could be brought to light. That, however, would point the finger of blame at the institutions rather than the nurses...can't have that, now can we?

Maybe it's different in other parts of the country but where I live, the nursing components of the ASN and BSN programs are essentially the same, but the BSN programs include an additional year of general education requirements. World literature 201 is not nearly as useful, when caring for patients, as adequate staffing.

Anyway, Wannabe, as an NICU nurse, I can tell you that either route you choose to get your RN will make you an RN, which is what you need to be to work in the NICU. Either route will make you eligible to become certified as a NICU nurse after you have 2 years of experience. Either route will enable you to pursue graduate school, should you decide to go the NNP route later on(several RN-MSN programs out there these days.) Do what works out best for you. Good Luck.

[wannabebabyRN]

teeny baby rn,
Thanks for the advice, what degree do you have now that you are in the NICU? do you have to take any extra courses to be an NICU nurse? Is it ok jsut to have the ADN if i don't ever want to do management and being a NICU nurse is all i will wnat to do or something else in main hospital patient care. I always plan to work in a hospital either in NICU the nursery or Pediatric ICU?

[PSA, RN]

Originally posted by wannabebabyRN
Hi I am a senior in high school and am on the waiting list for sandhills for an associate degree in nursing. I want to become a nurse to later be in the NICU. Is an ADN a good idea or should i go to a 4 year college for my BSN?

Just curious is that Sandhills CC? If so have they been NLN accredited yet? Just curious. I live not far from there. I graduated from FTCC. Good Luck..

[TeenyBabyRN]

Originally posted by wannabebabyRN
teeny baby rn,
Thanks for the advice, what degree do you have now that you are in the NICU? do you have to take any extra courses to be an NICU nurse? Is it ok jsut to have the ADN if i don't ever want to do management and being a NICU nurse is all i will wnat to do or something else in main hospital patient care. I always plan to work in a hospital either in NICU the nursery or Pediatric ICU?

Hi!

I have an ASN. I am working toward completing my BSN now, because I am hoping to enter a CRNA program. If not for that, ASN would suffice. I work in both NICU and PICU. As far as extra courses for NICU, the hospital that hires you will usually require/recommend you take a "high risk infant" course of some kind. They will send you to the course, which is usually coordinated through the hospital's education department. They usually ask for a commitment of 1-2 years in that unit in exchange for your being paid to attend the course.
Most NICUs require NRP (neonatal resuscitation protocol) certification, which is also provided by the hospital - no extra commitment for this as it's only an 8-hour class. Some NICUs and most PICUs requre PALS (pediatric advanced life support) certification, which is the peds version of ACLS, also provided by the hospital. These certifications are usually recommended/required within 1 year of employment in the units.

[wannabebabyRN]

teeny baby rn,
thanks for the advice. I hope you have good luck in the CRNA program. Thanks for all the good advice! I think i am going to just go for my ADN because i don't care about how much money i make and i never want to be in administrative. So thanks for the advice. I am so happy i have decided now.

[PSA, RN]

Good luck with school WannabebabyRN.