BSN RN & Certifications not allowed on my badge: I am outraged!

[Simba2241]

After much hard work, dedication, and sacrifice I obtained my BSN RN in 2004. Today I walked out of an orientation at a major Raleigh, NC hospital because I was told why I asked why RN's could not proudly display their education and credentials "WE do not recognize titles here. There are no titles" I was outraged and hurt. In educating the orientation administrative person (she was not a nurse) I explained that having to meet strict criteria for certification and education levels are not a title! She looked annoyed. SO I left.

Education and credentials are not easily obtained. They are representations of a RN's commitment to his/her craft. They are indications of the sacrifice and hard work she/ he has put in to go the extra mile. I am in no way negating an ADN. ON the contrary, ADN's make just as much of a sacrifice (However...in all honesty.... you will never hear an ADN voicing concern about not being able to display her ADN...sorry if I have offended any ADN's but the truth is the truth!).

When I handed HR my resignation letter and explained why I am resigning after only 2 days of orientation she looked annoyed and asked : "What does it matter. All of you are RN's and you all do the same thing" I just looked at her and shook my head.

I cannot understand an organization that BANS your right to display your hard work. What right does that organization have?

Needless to say I left another hospital for a minor pay increase at this facility. I regret that decision. I told HR I would rather tolerate a few cents less and have the HARD EARNED RIGHT TO DIAPLY MY CREDNTIALS than to work for an organization who tells me I CAN NOT DISPLAY MY CREDENTIALS>

Shame on you Wake Med! You will never achieve magnet status if you continue to disregard the hard work of your RN's!

Sandra BSN RN

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

Okay - this is just becoming too far off topic - will close for tonight.

[wizard100]

I read all the posts...interesting points from both sides.

Here are my thoughts, to all those who ganged up on Simba, RN, BSN

If a nurse is a nurse is a nurse then in a typical hospital setting,

LPN (is a nurse)--> cannot do assessment, cannot do education teaching, cannot do discharge teaching, cannot do certain IV drips but ADN,BSN can

ADN RN (is a nurse)----> cannot be a diabetic educator, cannot be a wound/ostomy specialist, cannot be floor educator, cannot be a research assistant, management areas but BSN RN can

BSN RN (is a nurse)---> cannot make diagnosis, cannot prescribe medications, cannot treat or order diagnostic test, refer to specialist but MSN can

MSN RN (is a nurse)--> can do all above things.

So a nurse is a nurse is a nurse...true....NOT at the same time.

If OP wants to display her credential, let her do what she believes for and stands for. This is what democracy is all about. Instead of complaining and contemplating or being a cry baby, she professionally handed out a resignation letter in something she did not believe. That is honesty and integrity even though it sounds arrogant. I dont see what she did wrong / immoral. She stood up for what she believed.

If a nurse is a nurse is a nurse then how come there is restriction what one can do and cannot do with the license between LPN, ADN, BSN, MSN. Each come with more educational yrs. If all BSN RN stand united to bullying hospital policy a nurse is a nurse is a nurse then their pay might be more than $2 more or in some cases fifty cents more.

On the other hand, sometimes yrs of experienced LPN can be knowledgeable than new grad ADN RN or BSN RN that does not mean experienced LPN can cross over nurses practice act of each state. When you are a new grad...there is so much to learn. Sometimes even an experienced CNA can teach RN but line stops with education and nurses practice act.

CNA, LPN, ADN RN, BSN RN, MSN RN are all part of nursing team. A nurse is a nurse is a nurse.....very vague definition of nurse.

One suggestion to Simba, RN BSN...if you want to be a leader with MSN/MBA...you need to learn to make friends not foes. You posts suggested that BSN RN are absolutely superior to ADN RN (which you may or may not have meant), you need to cool down and soften a bit. You don't humiliate others to brag about your achievements. You have every right to refuse a job...I applaud you not sticking one day more...you stood for what you believe.

[kjwarren]

It looks like this thread is on its last legs, but I can't help but put in my 2 cents.

I am currently working on my pre-reqs before nursing school. I have a bachelor's degree already in another field. Now, as it as been stated many times here you do not need a BSN to be a nurse. It's awesome that you have worked so hard, but when it comes down to it, your patients do not care how many papers you wrote or how many extra years you put in. By your theory I should include my other degree on my badge simply because I worked hard for it. If you are doing all this work just for recognition, you are going to have a rude wake-up call! For some of us, simple doing and being our best is all the recognition we need. Clearly, for others (example: you), that is not enough. Everyone else needs to know it too.

[LolaBunnie]

Well, I'm a lowly LPN, so I guess I'm not even qualified to be speakin' to the edjumakated folks....but....

I've only had one patient who didn't want me because I was an LPN; I cheerfully swapped him off for another patient, all while he yelled he wanted a "real nurse." He didn't seem to mind so much when I was doing chest compressions on him 2 hours later because the idiot BSN newhire gave him 10x the digoxin he was supposed to get.....them thar decimals can be tricky

:yeah:

:lol2:had me rolling reading that....:lol2:

if i ever need life saving procedures at a hospital, god forbid, I wont be checking name badges before someone touches me thats for sure......heck i probably wont be looking to see if they even work at the hospital... the parking lot attendant can give me CPR if he knows how for all i care.

the only reason i plan on going beyond an ADN to a BSN is because i want to eventually get a masters...if it wasn't for that honestly i probably wouldn't, as has already been said, it is a lot of work & a lot of money to make a $1 or $2 more per hour....definitely not enough to put me into early retirement. Judgement should be made based on quality of care not a few extra letters at the end of your name that you had to write some research papers for....

and thats my for what it's worth (which isn't much i'm sure)

[rngreenhorn]

Hummm... one of my patients today asked the housekeeper, the cna, the physical therapist, the doctor and the lady from dietary to bring her some more morphine. She didn't seem to notice the insignias on the name badges...

[FireStarterRN, BSN, RN]

I think that the people one might want to impress are ones colleagues. A BSN might have more status. Most patients would probably not notice.

It's rather like a men in the locker room type thing, if you know what I mean.

[Lovely_RN, MSN]

I have a B.A in a non-nursing area...worked really hard for it too. Wrote tons of lengthy papers, took plenty of math and science classes, and where did it ever really get me? There are plenty of people walking around with an alphabet soup behind their name and empty pockets. Personally I'm leery of this insistence that more degrees will = more respect for nurses. I just don't believe it to tell you the truth. I don't celebrate ignorance and I'm glad that nursing is an ever evolving profession that provides wonderful opportunities but this "look at me I'm an RN so I'm better than an LPN...I have my BSN so that makes me super important...I have an MSN so I'm even more super important....now I have my DNP so that makes me like a god or something attitude" is sort of like a mental illness with some nurses. Don't get me wrong I am going to continue my education to at least the MSN level but that's because I love to learn and I love nursing not because I have self-esteem issues and I'm looking to be validated through my educational achievements.

Not picking on Simba really...it's just that this post made me flashback to nursing school and reminds me of one professor I had in particular. This woman is a NP but she can't spell, uses poor grammar, and is one of the most inarticulate individuals that I have ever met. How she managed to get her masters and pass the national certification exam is beyond me. Her teaching style was to read off of power points that were full of spelling errors and when she wasn't doing that she would read (and mispronounce every other word) directly out of the textbook. When we asked her a question her nostrils would flare, her eyes would roll, and she would tell us to look it up. Yet no one could tell her that she wasn't the greatest thing since the invention of sliced bread because she is a NP and that means that she is smart despite any contradictory evidence.

Personally, I believe in the theory of multiple intelligences so as far as I am concerned if you have a BSN that doesn't make you smarter or better than anyone else. It merely means that you have an aptitude for learning nursing related material that some people don't have. However you might be an idiot in another area like law, the arts, or plumbing. I graduated at the top of my humble ADN program and some would say that makes me smart (except Simba because I'm just an ADN) but I can't get my mind around anything my IT husband tries to teach me about computers.

Now before anyone says I am putting down the nursing profession let me add this. I used to work for research scientists at an Ivy League School. These people were PhD holders in areas like pharmacology, microbiology, and chemistry. Some even had dual degrees MD/Phd. Pretty impressive credentials and yet some of them couldn't make it around the block without calling for directions. Some would be endlessly confused at the end of the month over their expense accounts. I'm talking about minor stuff that a big name PhD scientist should have been able to figure out easily enough. So what does a degree really mean beyond an aptitude for and a mastery of the content that is required to get that degree?

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

Sleepy time.