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:
Alright, posted to the green med student's little blog. I hope I did she can understand the logic I threw at her...
And GREAT JOB to everyone who posted there!!! Once again, I am so proud to be one of your number!!! Your statements were very well thought out and extraordinarily presented!!!!! WELL DONE!!!!:yeah::yeah:
Everyone else, if you haven't posted there yet, please let your voice be heard!!! Keep up the fight!!!!
Sorry for the third post in a row, but HB 532, once again sponsored by Cooper, must be the retaliation to the new bill that is being written in favor of EC (the school told me there is another bill being presented on our behalf...I'll let you know more as I get the info). It's just a big game of tag to her, apparently. Our lives and the lives of patients in this state matters not.
Remember, NO COMPROMISE!!! We must stand up and demand equal rights to other nurses in this state!! NO MORE WAIVERS, NO MORE ELITISM, NO MORE DISCRIMINATION!!!!
Specializes in med/surg,peds,hemodialysis,LT care,MDofc.
hey guys, i got an awesome first reply to the letter i sent!!...
dear elly,
thank you so much for your reply!
please do pass this pertinent information to anyone you know that is involved in the upcoming legislation and your peers. that would help a great deal; i sent this to all the members of the human health and services committee, but several members did not have email contacts posted and i cannot be certain they received the message.
there is also another related bill that has been introduced, hb 532, which we will need to defeat. i have little information on this one at this time, but will update as i learn more.
thank you again,
(i'm 31 in nurseyears)
[color=#333399][color=#333399]dear (i'm 31 in nurseyears),
[color=#333399][color=#333399]
[color=#333399][color=#333399]i have received the information that you recently sent to me concerning sb 49 and hb 475.[color=#333399][color=#333399] i have found it to be very helpful. thank you for taking the time to educate me further on [color=#333399][color=#333399]this issue. i can assure you that information such as yours is important in ena[color=#333399][color=#333399]bling me and others in the legislature[color=#333399][color=#333399] to make informed decisions on what are often complex issues.
if you have any questions about upcoming legislation, or if i can be of assistance in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me.
[color=#010101]there is no evidence that excelsior school of nursing graduates are less qualified than graduates of traditional schools of nursing.
[color=#010101][color=#010101] excelsior’s graduates are equally or more qualified –[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101] my fellow graduates have been practicing safely and effectively in georgia for up to 30 years![color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]-[color=#010101][color=#010101][color=#010101][color=#010101]the clinical requirements of the excelsior nursing school program are no less stringent than those of georgia schools; in fact, from my experience and perspective, having been assigned to instruct and work with georgia nursing school students frequently throughout my nursing career of 31 years, [color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]i have seen first hand that the clinical requirements of the excelsior nursing school are much higher and more difficult to achieve than those the georgia students must meet. when i often precept these rn students, even in the last weeks before they are to graduate, it has been necessary multiple times to stop them in action to remind them to fulfill the simplest fundamentals of washing hands prior to patient contact, and checking the patient's id by comparing the mar (medication administration record) with the patient's id arm band-each timeprior to giving medications- a standard step implemented consistently to preventmedicationerrors. these actions should be first-nature (not 'second nature') to these students about to complete their degree, as it is to me![color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101] i am a typical successful excelsior college adn student. [color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]an excelsior graduate would not fail to take these steps- the fact that one is a
graduate
of
excelsior
stands as proof
that one did
not
fail in those requirements, and
hundreds of others
.
the cpne, the final clinical trials required for completion of the adn nursing program, was the most difficult educational challenge i have ever experienced in my 31 year career. as an lpn i completed all clinical requirements; have for nearly two decades witnessed and participated in implementing the requirements for adn students on rotation assignment at my facility, and precepted newly hired adn and bsn staff (if i am
actively
teaching
clinical skills, how then can i
lack
clinical skills or experience?); and have participated in many educational offerings that were over and above the requirements for my degree, such as acls (advanced cardiac life support), ekg-interpretation courses, and pals (pediatric advanced life support), for example.
i have been a resource person
sought out by others
for
instruction and assistance with clinical skills
(such as inserting foley catheters, naso-gastric tubes, how to administer an intravenous medication or calculate the correct dosage, as a very few examples)
for the 17 years
i have worked
full-time
med/surg at my busy medical center; and been pulled countless times from my unit to work in the er, triage, icu, oncology, nursery, pediatrics, endoscopy, ambulatory surgery, and all the med/surg units.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
none
of these experiences, not all of them together, came close to the
stringent level of preparation
,
with the constant assistance of excelsior faculty
available to me
-the further
detailed learning
of and
strict adherence
to,
nursing fundamentals- that i, and other
successful
excelsior students, implemented for this cpne: the ultimate challenge.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]anyone who is successful in achieving the completion of this all-consumingtest deserves the ultimate reward: rn licensure in the state of georgia![color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]-
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]excelsior
[color=#010101][color=#010101] college
[color=#010101][color=#010101] is helping me to achieve my goal
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
of becoming an
rn
although my life circumstances make it difficult to attend a traditional school of nursing.
georgia has already experienced failures in the recruitment and retention of the nursing workforce as compared to other states.
how much worse would this nursing shortage become
if nurses took a
loa from our nursing jobs
to advance our degree- to
better
ourselves and
improve
the
level of care we give to the public?
some of us (as myself), though very energetic and extremely capable, do not have the advantage of time and physical endurance to attend traditional nursing school and work full-time, take care of home & family, support my son through 4 full deployments to iraq, have major surgery twice, etc., and maintain that level of physical and mental labor consistently and effectively for at least 2-3 years... with consideration that
much of the time and energy spent in traditional school is completely wasted:
an hour spent in grooming and preparation, and then
another
hour of travel to the school or clinical setting. in that amount of time i could be studying or halfway done with an assignment! if only the several nurses currently in school on my own unit took an educational loa,
there would be a major staffing deficit that would persist for two to three years at the least.
our current and worsening nursing shortage can not endure that additional strain.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]excelsior
[color=#010101][color=#010101] college school of nursing is an benefit to all of georgia that we can not afford to lose!
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]if it were not for excelsior college, my options, and i am certain for numerous other potential students, would be: (1) no school, remain an lpn or (2) take an educational loa. that's it.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101] that does
not
meet the needs of the state of georgia.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]-[color=#010101][color=#010101][color=#010101][color=#010101]bringing nurses from other countries into georgia does not fairly or reasonably address the nursing shortage. [color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]if there is concern that excelsior college, with its excellent reputation and accreditation does not meet georgia's standards, then whatprogram originated in an outside country, (that we may have limited knowledge of or limited factual access to information about), canassurea comparable level of excellence or security? [color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]why would we prefer to access outside resources[color=#010101][color=#010101], rather than our own excellent nurses here in the usa?[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101] excelsior college school of nursing is accredited by the
. (the nlnac is a specialized accrediting agency for nursing recognized by the u.s. secretary of education and the council for higher education accreditation (chea));
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
the national league for nursing (nln)
once again
in 2008 re-designated the excelsior college school of nursing, as one of only 13 centers of excellence in nursing education in the nation, a
[color=#010101][color=#010101]. it is the only fully distance learning program that has been awarded this distinction. other schools of nursing recognize and often follow the example of the excelsior college program as a leader in nursing education. graduates consistently pass the national licensing exam
at a rate equal to or higher than the national average
. excelsior college is
an option
available
only
to those who currently have
significant health care experience
in specific fields; and is a
viable
,
workable
, and
reasonable option
that
enables georgia
to take a national
leadership
position in approaching the nursing shortage in a
positive
and innovative way,
without creating competition to in-state nursing programs
, at
no cost to the state of georgia.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]in conclusion, please consider seriously the preceding information as you:
[color=#010101]vote againsthb 475- a billthat rep. sharon cooper has introduced which effectivelyeliminates licensure opportunity for excelsior graduates by placing severe restrictions on our program and graduates.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]this action
is once again completely unfounded, lacking any valid evidence against excelsior school of nursing or graduates.
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]rep. cooper has broadcast
incorrect and/or incomplete information
regarding excelsior college criteria requirements, and actions or errors made by excelsior graduates in the past (errors which are not exclusive to excelsior nurses, and which actually raise questions reflecting more negatively regarding these nurse's preceptors or facility orientation/training practices and procedures for newly-hired nurses, than toward the errant nurses themselves.)
[color=#010101][color=#010101]
[color=#010101][color=#010101]rep. cooper
maintains her stance even
after being informed
that
her information
was, and
still is
,
incorrect
.
[color=#010101]vote forsb 49- introduced by senator lee hawkins to keep rn licensure available in georgia for excelsior graduates.
[color=#010101][color=#010101] the bill
passed the senate
on a
46-2 vote
, and is now being considered by the georgia house of representatives as the way to
Specializes in med/surg,peds,hemodialysis,LT care,MDofc.
[gobsmackednurse] "alright, posted to the green med student's little blog. i hope i did she can understand the logic i threw at her...
and great job to everyone who posted there!!! once again, i am so proud to be one of your number!!! your statements were very well thought out and extraordinarily presented!!!!! well done!!!!:yeah::yeah:
everyone else, if you haven't posted there yet, please let your voice be heard!!! keep up the fight!!!!"
okie, i just submitted my reply there too!!! there's so much gr-8 info from everyone there, it's got to have enormous impact, woohoo!!
:typing
[color=#48d1cc]
[color=#48d1cc]
:onbch:(( oh, yeah i love the beach, guess you guessed..lol))
I just looked up HB 532 and it is another committee she wants to form to talk about nursing schools in Georgia. EC isn't even on the list to provide input. A nontraditional school in Geogia will be on the committee. Don't you think we have enough committees regarding all of this?? This is just another way of holding us all back. After the petitions we all filled out, our application goes to the Georgia Attorney's office. Now what?? How many more hoops does this state want from us EC students/graduates?? It is ashame. My application still says pending. More waiting......
If bill 475 passed the committe and just that ...right? It still has to pass the senate and signed by the governor...correct? Ok, what about bill 49? Is that in the HHS? and will that be voted on as well? What happens next?
. 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.
..
rnlately
439 Posts
Thanks BBFRN; I left my comment yesterday also.
HelicopterGal: You'll need to join the blog; it will only take a few minutes.