Published
Hey All,
I aM floored. I just received notice from GA Board of Nursing that they denied the endorsement of my MN RN license because I did not meet clinical practice requirements . When I called the board, they transferred me to a their Legal Nurse Consultant who stated that effective July 1, 2008 GA would no longer endorse RN license from Excelsior College students with no previous RN experience. She suggested that I go to my licensed state and work for a while then try again, but she could not give me a time frame.
Has anyone else experienced this. I thought we should at least have gotten some sort of notice/warning before this type of rule be adopted by the board. I am going to file a motion for reconsideration using an Attorney. Before I entered Excelsiors program I called GA Board to verify acceptance. I had been accepted to a traditional LPN to RN bridge program; I could have been almost finished their too. I am so sad right now. I have been crying for two days. I think I will need to see my doctor for Zoloft.
I have been an LPN for over 13 years doing Med/Surg for at least 10. I work on a hospital unit right now. THIS IS SO UNFAIR!!!:banghead:
all ga nursing student should be very concerned that the ga board of
nursing has recently made a decision to no longer license excelsior
college associate nursing graduates by endorsement. like myself, this
should create an outrage for any current students studying and
planning to practice nursing in ga. from someone who is a current
student, who has spent thousands of dollars and only has 2 classes
left to complete. i was left speechless after i received this letter.
at this time i am trying to let as many people as possible know about
this current development in ga. please, we need to come together and
let our voices be heard. excelsior college is meeting with the ga
nursing board in september if you can be there please contact the
southern performance assessment center, gna office at 404-325-5536
(toll free 800-324-0462) or email [color=#003399]spac@georgianurses. org. for all
those who can't attend please contact:
sylvia l bond r.n. msn, mba
executive director
ga board of nursing
237 coliseum drive
macon, ga 31217-3858
ph: 478-207-2440
please everyone call or write as soon as possible. if you know former
students who have graduated and are working as r.n's in ga
have them call and write too, and let the board know how this
educational opportunity allowed them to become r.n. in addition, have
your supervisors write about there intentions to hire you after you
graduate. this is very important. like myself i
know many of you have invested time and money into completeing this
program and be coming r.n. below is the letter i received:
important update: recent decision by the georgia board of nursing
august 5, 2008
dear student:
i am writing to make you aware of a recent decision by the georgia
board of nursing (board) that impacts you as an excelsior college
associate degree in nursing student.
in july the board made a decision to no longer license excelsior
college graduates by endorsement, a practice that they have followed
for more than 25 years. it is important for you to know that excelsior
college and the georgia nurses' association (gna) are working together
on your behalf. we are asking the board to change their position and
to allow licensure of our graduates. our request is well supported by
evidence focusing on our accreditation status, admission eligibility
requirements, curriculum rigor, nclex-rn pass rates, and employer data.
the board has agreed to allow gna and excelsior to address the board
at their september 17-19, 2008 meeting. it will be helpful to have
students attend the meeting to lend their support to our efforts. if
you are able to attend the meeting, please contact a staff member at
the southern performance assessment center, gna office at
404-325-5536 (toll free 800-324-0462) or [color=#003399]spac@georgianurses. org. they
will let you know the exact date and time that we will be on the
board's agenda and the location of the meeting.
the impetus for the board's action is unclear. at this juncture, it
seems that a change in statutory language is being interpreted by the
board in a manner that is not congruent with the original intent of
house bill 1041 that passed in july 2008. thus, in the best interest
and safety of the citizens of georgia, we will be providing the board
with additional information and will carefully address all their
questions so that it can make a decision on complete and accurate
information.
if you have questions about the board's recent decision, please
address your concerns to the executive director at the address below.
i am enclosing a fact sheet for your use when contacting the board.
sylvia l. bond r.n. msn, mba
executive director
georgia board of nursing
237 coliseum drive
macon, ga 31217-3858
email: [color=#003399][email protected]. gov
phone: 478-207-2440; fax: 478-207-1354
we are disappointed by this recent decision by the georgia board of
nursing that disqualifies graduates of our nationally accredited
nursing program from obtaining rn licensure. the unfortunate results
of this decision are a further reduction of the supply of qualified
nurses available to care for citizens of georgia and decreased access
to nursing education for individuals such as yourself who come to our
program of study with significant healthcare experience. graduates of
excelsior's nursing program are currently practicing successfully in
all 50 states and there is no objective evidence that our graduates
are unable to meet the critical demand for registered nurses in georgia.
i will contact you again after the board's meeting on september 17-19,
2008 to let you know the outcome of our request to the board.
sincerely,
m. bridget nettleton, phd, rn
dean, school of nursing
cc:
linda herren, rn, crna, president, georgia board of nursing
sylvia l. bond r.n. msn,mba, executive director, georgia board of nursing
cindy r. balkstra, ms, rn, cns-bc, president, gna
deborah hackman, cae, gna, chief executive officer, gna
debbie hatmaker, phd, rn, sane-a, chief programs officer, gna
Hi everybody! A couple weeks ago I posted a similar discussion because my lovely state of Virginia introduced new legislation that will now prevent Excelsior graduate RN's from EVER having a license in this state. EVER!! Not by NCLEX-RN exam... and not even by endorsement from another state. It has ALREADY happened in MD and CA as well. Now GA... who's next?? I had a phone conversation with a very condescending nurse at the NCSBN (National Council of State Boards of Nursing) who informed me that these states are moving in this legislative direction at THEIR RECOMMENDATION! My DESPERATE PLEA kind of fell on deaf ears here because I think most folks considered it a "Virginia problem". This is big folks! This has to be addressed on a NATIONAL LEVEL or it will soon be the END of the EC ADN distance learning program. I have been working DIRECTLY with the assistant dean of EC and have been trying to "organize the troops" on a national level. I have information and would love to share it with everyone and keep everyone in the loop. The Terms of Service for this message board forum are pretty strict when it comes to posting links in our messages so I am asking that ALL of you who desire to be part of this movement PLEASE E-MAIL ME through my profile ASAP and I will see that you stay informed. There's a BIG fight brewing! Come join us!
-Nikki Hudnall
ga bon:
the board has established rules that state the requirements for board-approval for nursing education programs. these rules can be found on the web here (see chapter 410-3, nursing education programs): http://rules.sos.state.ga.us/cgi-bin/page.cgi?g=georgia_board_of_nursing%2fnursing_education_programs%2findex.html&d=1
(4) the minimum length of a nursing education program shall be six (6) academic
quarters or four (4) academic semesters, each of which shall include nursing courses with
learning activities in classes, simulated settings, and practice settings.
as the technical aspects of healthcare has become increasingly complex, boards of nursing are responding by requiring that course work and actual hands on practice in area study needs to occur for patient protection.
how distance learning college adapts to that requirement: local preceptors, week long emesion training remains to be seen.
to excelsior college students/graduates:
i am posting this as a new thread since i see several posts within different threaded discussions on this issue.
i am the director of the southern performance assessment center. we are affiliated with the georgia nurses association--the membership organization for rns in ga we offer cpne exams for excelsior college adn students in our state.
we appreciate the heartfelt responses to the issue regarding the georgia board of nursing's change for licensure endorsement impacting the excelsior college students. the georgia nurses association on behalf of the southern performance assessment center and in collaboration with excelsior college is working to resolve this issue with the georgia board of nursing. we will be making a presentation to the board in september (date and time to be determined) and have communicated our concerns to a number of legislative officials. we will certainly keep you informed of our progress and will identify the specific date and time of our presentation when we are informed--and should you want to attend the meeting to show your support. i would ask you to contact the georgia board of nursing as it was suggested in the excelsior college communication to students. we would like to have them hear from successful graduates as well.
we are not, at this time, asking students/graduates to contact legislators. please allow us the time to work through the process. should we need to advocate through legislative officials in the near future, we will certainly apprise you of this effort. contact information for the georgia board of nursing is as follows:
sylvia l. bond r.n. msn, mba
executive director
georgia board of nursing
237 coliseum drive
macon, ga 31217-3858
email: [email protected]
phone: 478-207-2440; fax: 478-207-1354
please cc debbie hatmaker on any emails or letters you send to the board. we are working to resolve this issue to the benefit of excelsior college graduates, students, employers and the citizens of our state who benefit from your nursing care.
debbie hatmaker, phd, rn
chief programs officer
georgia nurses association
southern performance assessment center
3032 briarcliff rd ne
atlanta, ga 30329-2655
404.325.5536
404.325.0407 fax
Yeah, I guess that sounds good to some, but when you consider actual nursing clinicals, most students that I have worked with in my department have been seriously lacking when it comes to those increasingly complex aspects of healthcare that you mentioned.
I work in a teaching facility, so we have students on a daily basis. I asked a BSN student (near graduation) recently if she would like to get some IV sticks during our shift together. She declined, stating that they were not taught anything about IVs, and that they were told they could learn all of that after graduation if their respective employers require the skill. I had a hard time believing this, until other students from the same university came through during their rotations and said the exact same thing. I had a similar experience with a student from another school regarding urinary catheter insertion. I'll bet that I'm not the only one seeing this.
I do realize that this is only anecdotal, but to say that a student in a traditional program is somehow a safer healthcare provider because they showed up and observed is just nonsense. ANYONE can say that, and some do, but it doesn't mean that there's an ounce of truth to it! The majority of EC grads enter the program with lots of experience and then MUST prove themselves by surviving the CPNE. That's way more than showing up and observing.
So no, I won't buy that argument. What is so complex that they are so focused on that they neglect to teach them basic skills? I guess they'll have to learn it later on; maybe from an EC grad.
I was about to post a draft of my letter that I plan to send to my state representatives but then read the post from the SPAC director discouraging us from contacting state reps at this time. Anyone have any thoughts?
My gut reaction is the time to sit back and wait is long gone. I see Sept. as a last chance not a first step with the GBON because they have their law approved and have absolutely no motivation to change their course of action.
Our representatives are supposed to feel some obligation to hear us and react. Those who weren't directly working for the University System and the GBON probably said "Oh yea, fingerprinting nurses, ABSOLUTELY!" with no idea that they were simultaneously banning many of their constituents from being able to practice as highly qualified, experienced RNs in their state. I think many would be shocked that two groups who I'm sure are constantly asking for new $$$$ "to try to resolve the nursing shortage crisis" took an action to exile a substantial group of GA residents who are months or DAYS from being ready to step into those vacancies and hit the ground running.
GEEZ I'm so tired of running my HR & BP through the roof over this. It's a good thing we're nurses, right?
My advice is to keep that letter at the ready, but hold it to see what happens. The ideal time for us to have acted was before May 12, when the Governor signed it.
I have confidence in Dr. Hatmaker and the GNA. She is probably way more accustomed to dealing with boards and legislative bodies than I am. I sent my letter to everyone I could think of who had a stake in this before I ever talked to her.
Hopefully they can keep us posted.
I read somewhere on this board that students in Oklahoma are required clinical time from Excelsior and somehow they do get that clinical experience. I just wish Excelsior (since they already know the problem) would allow students who need the clinical experience for graduation that option. But I'm sure with each board there are issues as to why it's not being offered. Good luck Georgia nursing students! I hope you can get your issue resolved, don't let your state become the California of the east coast.
I agree that EC should do everything possible to gain acceptance in every state. If the CPNE is considered adequate by a particular state, and I certainly think it should be, then that should be all that is required.
If, on the other hand, a state like CA decides that they want EC students to complete an actual clinical rotation, then EC should work with that state and devise a way for EC students to complete the rotation. This could be done through cooperative agreements with colleges/hospitals in the students' home areas, just as they do now with hospitals where they conduct the CPNE. Sure, it will add to the cost of the program, but it could potentially end all of the problems regarding which states accept EC and which do not. I for one would have been glad to pay extra to remove any doubt about whether I could obtain licensure in any state after graduating.
The ultimate goal should be for EC to gain acceptance in each and every state, no exceptions. I personally think the CPNE is more than adequate, but since most people have no idea how hard this exam can be to complete successfully, and how it might just possibly be a better predictor of graduate nurse competency than completion of a traditional clinical rotation (is there any reseacrh to support or refute?), EC must work with these states to gain their approval. What else can they do to gain states' approval? Anyone?
serenity67
70 Posts
Hi everybody! A couple weeks ago I posted a similar discussion because my lovely state of Virginia introduced new legislation that will now prevent Excelsior graduate RN's from EVER having a license in this state. EVER!! Not by NCLEX-RN exam... and not even by endorsement from another state. It has ALREADY happened in MD and CA as well. Now GA... who's next?? I had a phone conversation with a very condescending nurse at the NCSBN (National Council of State Boards of Nursing) who informed me that these states are moving in this legislative direction at THEIR RECOMMENDATION! My DESPERATE PLEA kind of fell on deaf ears here because I think most folks considered it a "Virginia problem". This is big folks! This has to be addressed on a NATIONAL LEVEL or it will soon be the END of the EC ADN distance learning program. I have been working DIRECTLY with the assistant dean of EC and have been trying to "organize the troops" on a national level. I have information and would love to share it with everyone and keep everyone in the loop. The Terms of Service for this message board forum are pretty strict when it comes to posting links in our messages so I am asking that ALL of you who desire to be part of this movement PLEASE E-MAIL ME ASAP and I will see that you stay informed. There's a BIG fight brewing! Come join us!
-Nikki