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:
they sent another update right after that with the contacts.
december 2, 2008
georgia nursing students and graduates call to action
please note: in our earlier message the names and addresses to which your letters should be sent were not included. our apology for this mistake and you will find them at the end of this letter. thank you.
as we promised in our message to you on november 20, this letter is an update on what has happened regarding licensure opportunity for our associate degree nursing graduates in georgia.
in addition, the time is now right to ask you to write a letter to the board of nursing (board) and key legislative leaders. information on what this letter should say and to whom it should be sent is outlined at the end of this correspondence.
updates
since governor perdue issued his statement on november 14 in support of bona fide nursing education programs such as excelsior's, the board has signaled a willingness to reconsider a means to resolve the current situation. we also understand that certain legislative leaders are interested in helping in this process.
the governor has made three new appointments to the board, all of which are effective immediately. the appointments replace three of the current board members.
on thanksgiving day, the college placed a one-half page message in the atlanta journal constitution in an effort to raise greater public awareness of the problem.
what you can do
as you know, governor perdue has promised to work with the general assembly to obtain a legislative remedy that will keep the licensing option open for our graduates. this may take several months to achieve and we will need your help after an actual bill has been introduced in the general assembly. we will provide specific information for a letter to your individual legislators in a future correspondence.
in the meantime, given the apparent renewed interest from the board to consider an appropriate solution for currently enrolled students and recent graduates, we are asking you to write a letter now to the board and to key legislators.
this letter would urge that students enrolled before july 1 (the effective date of the current amended law that the board has relied upon), and recent graduates who have not been able to receive a license in georgia, be eligible for licensure by endorsement. in other words, you are asking that you be considered eligible for licensure under the terms in effect prior to july 1.
the letter should be in your own words and tell the board and legislators your story: why you want to become an rn and how important it is to you, why you chose excelsior college to earn your degree, and how your current and past clinical experiences are helping you to achieve your goal.
this letter is an opportunity to show how you are affected by the board's decision. it is important that your letter be professional in nature and not include any negative or derogatory statements. you want to make a good impression of yourself and excelsior's program.
as you write this letter, it will be important to include certain points such as the following:
there is no evidence to support the board's decision to place barriers in the path of excelsior students and graduates seeking rn licensure in georgia.
excelsior's nursing program has been nationally accredited since 1975 and is one of only 13 centers of excellence in nursing education in the nation.
you enrolled in the excelsior nursing program relying on the board's 30-year history of licensing excelsior's graduates.
there was no notice prior to july 1, by the board or any other government agency, that hb 1041 would be interpreted in a manner that would deny you licensure.
ask that the board take action at its january meeting to allow you to be eligible for licensure in georgia under the terms of georgia law in effect at the time you enrolled in the excelsior nursing program.
we suggest that you write and mail a letter, rather than sending an email, so that the volume of correspondence from students and graduates will be more evident to those receiving these letters. please address your letter to the president of the georgia board of nursing and send copies to the government officials whose addresses are shown on the following page. please also send copies to excelsior college and to the georgia nurses association. these letters should be written and mailed as soon as you possibly can so that they are received prior to the board's meeting in january.
Hey everyone....things are looking up!! Man, the governor replaced 3 of the boards members ag the Ga BON thats awesome!!! Ha! I wish I could of seen the look on their face. Things are looking good and getting excited, everyone do your part we may can get this thing turned around sooner than we think.
Specializes in Trauma,ER,CCU/OHU/Nsg Ed/Nsg Research.
i would like to encourage other alumni to also write letters to support our future colleagues in ga, as we are evidence of the program's success. we are in a unique position to provide proof that ec turns out excellent and highly successful nurses, and can provide a good picture of what a typical ec grad looks like.
This letter would urge that students enrolled before July 1 (the effective date of the current amended law that the Board has relied upon), and recent graduates who have not been able to receive a license in Georgia, be eligible for licensure by endorsement. In other words, you are asking that you be considered eligible for licensure under the terms in effect prior to July 1.
:confused:I am not sure that this would just affect the students that were "enrolled" by July 1st. From what I read at Governor Perdue's website, he is encourage new students as well.
The statement on his website is,
"I hope the Board's decision will not discourage emerging graduates and future students in these programs from continuing their studies and joining the dedicated group of nurses in this state working every day to create a healthier
OK. I'm Irish. I still don't get it. Are they saying that Excelsior grads pose a risk to the public welfare of Georgia?
Fewer qualified nurses(as a result of BON) =decrease access to quality health care (as a result of BON) =increased risk to public welfare (as a result of BON).
Can someone explain why the BON has chosen not to accept grads from Excelsior? I want to write a letter and address the BON's argument.
Hi Tammy, I'm so happy to see everyone joining together to fight for this cause. I'm not exactly sure myself why they have chosen to exclude EC students, but I know they have been plotting to do so for a heck of a long time now.And finally with this bill they made a way to do just that, a very back handed way, if I do say so myself.
But, now that the governor has come out against the boards decision, I believe things are going to be looking up for us. Just remember when writing your letters, to stay positive.
I would love to read the article EC placed in the AJC newspaper. I went to AJC.com, but could not find it. If anyone has the link or a copy, please let me know. Thanks
Would it be wrong to request that Georgia stop the non-sense of getting licensed in other states and practicing by endorsement? I mean if we are changing the law and all.....why not go ahead and let us sit for the GA boards? Then GA would get the application and license fees.
Just a thought...I guess maybe we should just stick to the matter at hand and deal with the rest later.
I forwarded the e-mails about the letter writing to all my family members and friends and requested they write letters as well. I think if we clog the offices with mail, it will make a point!
Jodi Heflin, LPN in Ga RN in SC as of 11/19 yeah!!!!!!
OK. I'm Irish. I still don't get it. Are they saying that Excelsior grads pose a risk to the public welfare of Georgia?
Fewer qualified nurses(as a result of BON) =decrease access to quality health care (as a result of BON) =increased risk to public welfare (as a result of BON).
Has anyone sent a note to CNN or FOX?
According to the BON and their antiquated thinking, and I paraphrase, "the educational provided by EC is less stringent than those of the brick and mortar schools". Now when I read between the lines I see "We've finally found a loop hole to get rid of a school and it's graduates because they don't do things the way we did eons ago."
According to the BON and their antiquated thinking, and I paraphrase, "the educational provided by EC is less stringent than those of the brick and mortar schools". Now when I read between the lines I see "We've finally found a loop hole to get rid of a school and it's graduates because they don't do things the way we did eons ago."
Wow, now that's arrogance coupled with ignorance and hypocrisy at its finest. First, the BON is not qualified to make determinations of educational quality of nursing programs equivalent to United States Department of Education recognized accrediting agencies such as NLAN. The BON is in the regulation business-not the educational business. Second, if they are maintaining that EC standards are less stringent than those of brick and mortar, they are failing to use best evidence to make such determinations as utilized by educational experts from the NLAN. Failing to use best evidence in practice is the essence of malpractice and exceeds the threshold regarding standards of incompetence by which the BON holds licensees accountable. As a consequence of the BON's reckless disregard for adhering to these standards by making such non-supported blanket statements, citizens of Georgia have been placed in peril (e.g. less nurses, less access to quality of health care).
I wonder how these board members keep their nursing license, much less their jobs.
. 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.
I wish I could of seen the look on their face. Things are looking good and getting excited, everyone do your part we may can get this thing turned around sooner than we think.
sunshine06
51 Posts
they sent another update right after that with the contacts.
december 2, 2008
georgia nursing students and graduates call to action
please note: in our earlier message the names and addresses to which your letters should be sent were not included. our apology for this mistake and you will find them at the end of this letter. thank you.
as we promised in our message to you on november 20, this letter is an update on what has happened regarding licensure opportunity for our associate degree nursing graduates in georgia.
in addition, the time is now right to ask you to write a letter to the board of nursing (board) and key legislative leaders. information on what this letter should say and to whom it should be sent is outlined at the end of this correspondence.
updates
since governor perdue issued his statement on november 14 in support of bona fide nursing education programs such as excelsior's, the board has signaled a willingness to reconsider a means to resolve the current situation. we also understand that certain legislative leaders are interested in helping in this process.
the governor has made three new appointments to the board, all of which are effective immediately. the appointments replace three of the current board members.
on thanksgiving day, the college placed a one-half page message in the atlanta journal constitution in an effort to raise greater public awareness of the problem.
what you can do
as you know, governor perdue has promised to work with the general assembly to obtain a legislative remedy that will keep the licensing option open for our graduates. this may take several months to achieve and we will need your help after an actual bill has been introduced in the general assembly. we will provide specific information for a letter to your individual legislators in a future correspondence.
in the meantime, given the apparent renewed interest from the board to consider an appropriate solution for currently enrolled students and recent graduates, we are asking you to write a letter now to the board and to key legislators.
this letter would urge that students enrolled before july 1 (the effective date of the current amended law that the board has relied upon), and recent graduates who have not been able to receive a license in georgia, be eligible for licensure by endorsement. in other words, you are asking that you be considered eligible for licensure under the terms in effect prior to july 1.
the letter should be in your own words and tell the board and legislators your story: why you want to become an rn and how important it is to you, why you chose excelsior college to earn your degree, and how your current and past clinical experiences are helping you to achieve your goal.
this letter is an opportunity to show how you are affected by the board's decision. it is important that your letter be professional in nature and not include any negative or derogatory statements. you want to make a good impression of yourself and excelsior's program.
as you write this letter, it will be important to include certain points such as the following:
we suggest that you write and mail a letter, rather than sending an email, so that the volume of correspondence from students and graduates will be more evident to those receiving these letters. please address your letter to the president of the georgia board of nursing and send copies to the government officials whose addresses are shown on the following page. please also send copies to excelsior college and to the georgia nurses association. these letters should be written and mailed as soon as you possibly can so that they are received prior to the board's meeting in january.
thank you,
m. bridget nettleton, phd, rn
dean, school of nursing
address your letter to:
linda herren, rn
president, georgia board of nursing
237 coliseum drive
macon, ga 31217-3858
send copies to:
hon. casey cagle
lt. governor
240 state capitol
atlanta, ga 30334
hon. glenn richardson
speaker of the house of representatives
332 state capitol
atlanta, ga 30334
hon. sharon cooper
georgia house of representatives
436 state capitol
atlanta, ga 30334
hon. don thomas
georgia senate
121 g-state capitol
atlanta, ga 30334
hon. karen c. handel
georgia secretary of state
214 state capitol
atlanta, georgia 30334
m. bridget nettleton, phd, rn
dean, school of nursing
excelsior college
7 columbia circle
albany, ny 12203-5159
debbie hackman, cae
chief executive officer
georgia nurses association
3032 briarcliff rd.
atlanta, ga 30329-2655
sandy bond, rn, msn, mba
executive director
georgia board of nursing
237 coliseum drive
macon, ga 31217-3858