Updated: Dec 2 Published Jul 25
FullGlass, BSN, MSN, NP
2 Articles; 1,868 Posts
The Spotty Training of America's Nurse Practitioners
You can read this on Apple News if you have that. Unfortunately, you must be a subscriber to read the print article. Below is a link to a video:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2024-07-24/big-take-the-spotty-training-of-nurse-practitioners-podcast
offlabel
1,645 Posts
These are not the droids you're looking for.....
Fly Guy JB, MSN, RN, EMT-P
71 Posts
Well, they aren't completely off base. I get frustrated with the never ending litany of "what is the fastest BSN program with the least amount of work required" posts that show up in every feed. These speed craving students have been seeking the same speed and distance learning options in NP programs.
If we look at the history of NP programs, these were designed for tenured nurses in their discipline to advance their practice and to reach more patients. Today it is the fast track to leave the bedside for the nurse who hasn't been at the bedside for very long.
So, what's the answer? Overhaul the entire nursing education system! Of course, but they have been trying to do that since the 1960s with limited success and no real plan in the making. Demand has increased and educational institutions have jumped in to meet the demand without necessarily having a track record of successful training of NPs or even registered nurses in many cases. Many of these late entry into the market schools, as the article points out, have a nearly 100% acceptance rate. Does anyone think this is reasonable? Does setting up your own clinicals seem reasonable? Does getting someone to sign off that you are A-OK even if you've had less than rigorous clinical experiences seem safe for you or your patients? Can you catch up once you start your assignment, maybe. But in our meat grinder of a healthcare system more often than not the newly minted NP is expected to hit the ground running a race they are often unprepared for by either experience or training.
I am the last one to not encourage nursing education or growth, however, these so called "diploma mills" are churning out graduates who may be less than well prepared for their next role potentially endangering their licenses and patients.
subee, MSN, CRNA
1 Article; 5,899 Posts
Fly Guy JB said: Well, they aren't completely off base. I get frustrated with the never ending litany of "what is the fastest BSN program with the least amount of work required" posts that show up in every feed. These speed craving students have been seeking the same speed and distance learning options in NP programs. If we look at the history of NP programs, these were designed for tenured nurses in their discipline to advance their practice and to reach more patients. Today it is the fast track to leave the bedside for the nurse who hasn't been at the bedside for very long. So, what's the answer? Overhaul the entire nursing education system! Of course, but they have been trying to do that since the 1960s with limited success and no real plan in the making. Demand has increased and educational institutions have jumped in to meet the demand without necessarily having a track record of successful training of NPs or even registered nurses in many cases. Many of these late entry into the market schools, as the article points out, have a nearly 100% acceptance rate. Does anyone think this is reasonable? Does setting up your own clinicals seem reasonable? Does getting someone to sign off that you are A-OK even if you've had less than rigorous clinical experiences seem safe for you or your patients? Can you catch up once you start your assignment, maybe. But in our meat grinder of a healthcare system more often than not the newly minted NP is expected to hit the ground running a race they are often unprepared for by either experience or training. I am the last one to not encourage nursing education or growth, however, these so called "diploma mills" are churning out graduates who may be less than well prepared for their next role potentially endangering their licenses and patients.
I love your use of the word "tenured." No NP should be working in an ER without ER experience. We've lost out way and our credibility. AN NP master's isn't a business or a music degree and, for the demands of the job, we aren't taking our education seriously. We crank so many if them out like hot dogs in the fervor to get them out in the market. If NP's aren't up to the demand, PA's will fill the void.
RickyRescueRN, BSN, RN
208 Posts
As a RN with 32yrs of experience in Critical Care, Emergency & Trauma Nursing, Flight and Transport Nursing and now OR nursing ; it astounds me that someone can walk in with no medical experience, take an accelerated masters degree as an ACNP and then proceed to treat patients. Most of what I know now is due to the many patient experiences and interactions I've had; critical situations I've had to deal with; confounding clinical presentations I've had to figure out in order to treat. This knowledge does NOT come from taking a 2yr Masters degree or even a DNP . If those who have not intention of working at the bedside , nursing patients and learning these pearls of wisdom, want to Fast Track to a be an NP; then they need to face the litigation and consequence that will happen as a result of their lack of clinical preparedness .
Hospital systems run by advanced degree administrative CNO's (nurses) are in no small part driving this.
Bracker4U
2 Posts
subee said: I love your use of the word "tenured." No NP should be working in an ER without ER experience. We've lost out way and our credibility. AN NP master's isn't a business or a music degree and, for the demands of the job, we aren't taking our education seriously. We crank so many if them out like hot dogs in the fervor to get them out in the market. If NP's aren't up to the demand, PA's will fill the void.
Cannot agree more! I taught for a while in a BSN program and we had students applying to NP programs the moment they graduated and passed the NCLEX. What in the literal ***** has happened to this profession? Are we so desperate to be called "doctor" that we have forgotten the important role of getting experience or known previously as paying your dues. There used to be sensible requirements to get X number of years of experience as a CNA or some type of medical job prior to even being accepted to nursing school, then there was a minimum time in Med Surg prior to moving into step down or ICU then a number of years of practice as a nurse prior to application to grad school for NP programs. Now? You need a pulse and a valid credit card. I always, always advocate for education. Always. BUT? There is a very important component of experience to match education that cannot be bought or bypassed. The level of respect has fallen so that in the hospital I'm in? The PA's are far more respected than the NP. Such a disservice to our profession. I'm 30+ years into nursing. I still work at the bedside in the hospital as an RN as a practicing NP with an NP job elsewhere so I do not lose skills, so I stay current on care and medication, research and evidence based practices. Does everyone have to do this? No. But please let us come together as a profession to stop the floodgates of NP grads or applicants who may not even realize why they need to work as a nurse, get experience etc BEFORE proceeding to independently diagnose, prescribe, and treat patients. This should never translate to an us vs them argument. This is for the benefit of our profession and most importantly? For our patients and the public.
MentalKlarity, BSN, NP
360 Posts
So embarrassing. All you Walden and Chamberlain jokes are who this article is about. You're ruining our profession with your short cuts.
CuriousConundrum
44 Posts
MentalKlarity said: So embarrassing. All you Walden and Chamberlain jokes are who this article is about. You're ruining our profession with your short cuts.
I agree with this.
CuriousConundrum said: I agree with this.
It's not the students' fault, they may live in a rural area with no access to a college but it's our own so called nursing leaders that have just given up on demanding better for the public. Sometimes you can't do what you think you want to do. You have to be willing to make the sacrifice for the position. We can do better but of course that would decrease the number of providers. Students need more financial support to move to the universities while they are in school. Meanwhile we are wasting money paying insurance companies and the pharmacy "managers" who are taking money away from the providers and the patients. Rant over:)
subee said: It's not the students' fault, they may live in a rural area with no access to a college but it's our own so called nursing leaders that have just given up on demanding better for the public. Sometimes you can't do what you think you want to do. You have to be willing to make the sacrifice for the position. We can do better but of course that would decrease the number of providers. Students need more financial support to move to the universities while they are in school. Meanwhile we are wasting money paying insurance companies and the pharmacy "managers" who are taking money away from the providers and the patients. Rant over:)
Fewer providers that are higher quality is safer than an oversupply of incompetent idiots
Do the accrediting bodies bear any responsibility? Anesthesia training programs and CRNA's are held to extremely high standards for authorization to even open their doors and CE requirements to remain in practice, respectively. As heterogeneous as anesthesia training program quality is, by and large you know what you're getting with a new grad CRNA. Not so much an NP.