Is the RN--->BSN push a clever way to get older nurses out of the way

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As in certain "Baby Boomers" who wont retire? Wont we NEED a faster RN producing mechanism (hello again, ADN programs!) in order to provide enough nurses to care for this huge group of people due to retire soon?? Just wondering...

And the way the conversation has took a turn has given life to my suspicion in the fact that my generation, who paid around 1120% MORE for our education, well we payed so much that we NEED to work. We don't have bargaining power, because Sallie Mae will HUNT YOU DOWN. Sure there is a rare shining person whose mom and dad saved up for the entire cost of college or that was able to work full time through entire nursing program (my school advised against it and infact said 'don't even try it'!!) but the majority of new grads I know have their backs up against the wall and can't turn down abhorable working conditions or low pay. I work along side a 25 year old BSN RN who makes the same $18/hr. as I do and says most of her cohort hasn't found jobs yet (graduated May 2013).

They need to pay back their loans. That is what I mentioned around half way through reading these wonderful responses. Seems like the schools and the for-profit health care providers are in kahuts. They are getting rich off us.

College Tuition's 1,120 Percent Increase - Businessweek

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
And the way the conversation has took a turn has given life to my suspicion in the fact that my generation, who paid around 1120% MORE for our education, well we payed so much that we NEED to work.

Might I suggest you put the shovel down and stop digging a hole? Just because you paid more for college (please keep in mind that while college may be more expensive, so too have wages increased; maybe not at the same rate, but still increased) does not mean that you are the only person/group of people who need to work. We all need to work to pay for the things necessary to live, pay back those school loans, save for retirement, etc. Being a new grad does not mean that you need to work any more than the nurse who graduated 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years ago.

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
And the way the conversation has took a turn has given life to my suspicion in the fact that my generation, who paid around 1120% MORE for our education, well we payed so much that we NEED to work. We don't have bargaining power, because Sallie Mae will HUNT YOU DOWN. Sure there is a rare shining person whose mom and dad saved up for the entire cost of college or that was able to work full time through entire nursing program (my school advised against it and infact said 'don't even try it'!!) but the majority of new grads I know have their backs up against the wall and can't turn down abhorable working conditions or low pay. I work along side a 25 year old BSN RN who makes the same $18/hr. as I do and says most of her cohort hasn't found jobs yet (graduated May 2013).

They need to pay back their loans. That is what I mentioned around half way through reading these wonderful responses. Seems like the schools and the for-profit health care providers are in kahuts. They are getting rich off us.

College Tuition's 1,120 Percent Increase - Businessweek

I'm not sure that the conversation "took a turn" since it was fairly insulting to older nurses from the start. Some of us paid for our own education. I worked three jobs (at a time) and took out loans. Education costs may have increased over a thousand percent, but costs in general have increased as well. At the time I paid for my education, the total cost of a brand new car was less than what some of my colleagues are paying for a monthly mortgage payment now. A nice apartment cost less than $100/month and when I moved into it I stocked my pantry with flour, sugar, spices and a week's worth of groceries for $17.

I've saved for my retirement, but my savings took a big hit a few years ago. And we're still paying for the child's education . . .

But I'd be happy to step aside and let some brand new nurse have my job with benefits -- as long as they're willing to support me!

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Specializes in PCCN.
Seems like the schools and the for-profit health care providers are in kahuts. They are getting rich off us.

College Tuition's 1,120 Percent Increase - Businessweek

Absolutely true. Sad, but true. The schools are pure evil selling the public degrees , and then could give two hoots whether we get a job, despite owing money. It's worse than credit cards!!! At least with a credit card you got to enjoy the item you bought!

But with this said, why would anyone knock community colleges? I would think it makes more sense to pay for that , and not be in extreme debt. It is responsible spending.

Yes, this is the elitist thing that colleges and hospitals are now selling. Pay out the nose for a 4-6 year degree. Have the prestige of that degree. But now when you can't find a job in that field, or find a job that pays ridiculously low and doesnt even pay back your loans for 20 years, no one cares. Talk about indentured servitude. The bank owns you.

Unless you ( I dont mean the poster - you is generalized)were one of those rich elitists who was able to have mummy and daddy send you to Ivy league university. I imagine hospitals will probably go that way in the name of customer service someday also- " Welcome to Awesome hospital USA, where 90 percent of our nurses graduated from Yale university .

Sounds alot better to a consumer than Welcome to Hicktown hospital , where all our nurses went to St Mattress Community College.

:-(

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
And the way the conversation has took a turn has given life to my suspicion in the fact that my generation, who paid around 1120% MORE for our education, well we payed so much that we NEED to work. We don't have bargaining power, because Sallie Mae will HUNT YOU DOWN. Sure there is a rare shining person whose mom and dad saved up for the entire cost of college or that was able to work full time through entire nursing program (my school advised against it and infact said 'don't even try it'!!) but the majority of new grads I know have their backs up against the wall and can't turn down abhorable working conditions or low pay. I work along side a 25 year old BSN RN who makes the same $18/hr. as I do and says most of her cohort hasn't found jobs yet (graduated May 2013).

They need to pay back their loans. That is what I mentioned around half way through reading these wonderful responses. Seems like the schools and the for-profit health care providers are in kahuts. They are getting rich off us.

College Tuition's 1,120 Percent Increase - Businessweek

Yes they are. I have been saying this for YEARS and I am sure i can dig up an old post or two where I said so and predicted where this would all end up. I was told I was a crusty old bat and I needed to wake up and get a clue. That "you old nurses" are just eating their young....well I guess I wasn't wrong all along.

I think it is unfair to say that you paid so much more makes you deserving. while tuition was lower so was everything else....but you still graduated with debt and it took years to pay off the difference was job availability. The other difference was the proliferation of these for profit school charging ASTRONOMICAL tuition for BSN. I ahve seen tuition as high as $132,00.00 for a BSN...I Warned about these as well....and was met with the same disdain.....for what did I know as an old dinosaur.

I feel for you I really do. This present generation of nurses is having a hrad go...and when us "Boomers" die off finally... I think there will be another small shortage as those who have graduated now will move on. But it will never be what it one was.....I am sorry.

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Specializes in PCCN.

Thing is, I know of other professions- teaching, in which my friend still owes 88,000 dollars on her degree and cant get anything beyond a job at a catholic school for 9 dollars an hour, and another who had a social work masters , and this year she finally got a job. After working at Wendy's for THREE YEARS d/t not being able to find a job in that field.

I guess I can offer this, I feel sorry for anyone growing up in this day and age. The country is corrupt, banks are corrupt, and employers are corrupt. No such thing as loyalty as it was like when my father worked.

:-(

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Thing is, I know of other professions- teaching, in which my friend still owes 88,000 dollars on her degree and cant get anything beyond a job at a catholic school for 9 dollars an hour, and another who had a social work masters , and this year she finally got a job. After working at Wendy's for THREE YEARS d/t not being able to find a job in that field.
I assume your schoolteacher friend with the $88,000 student loan debt attended a private university when the same result could have been achieved by two years of community college and the final two years at an in-state regional university with affordable tuition.

One major mistake with higher education is the wrong choice of school for one's educational goals. For example, it would be nonsensical for me to have attended the Yale School of Nursing with tuition of $60,000 per year for four years, leaving me with a whopping $240,000 in debt. The Ivy League colleges are optimal for careers such as medicine, law and business, but not for a middle income nurse.

I'm not saying your teacher friend attended an Ivy League school, but even a private religious university can leave a person in crippling debt at $25,000 in annual tuition.

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
It's not just one, and it's not just UPenn.

No kidding.

JAMA 288:16 Aiken et al., 2002

Yes, yes, we have all seen the Aiken study over an over for years now. I was under the impression you were refering to a different, more recent study done by UPenn,

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
I totally agree. Just stating my reality. No matter what our generation, or what point we are in our careers, the worst thing we can do is turn against one another bc that would lower our strength and value as a whole. It would be nice if we could ban togeather somehow --- as in actual nurses, not corporations who treat us like disposable trash.

Yes . . .I took your drop dead comment to mean that employers everywhere are trying to squeeze out every drop of work they can from employees before they qualify for full-time and it's associated benefits. Stagnant (or dropping) wages along with rising cost of living is a reality all of us face.

Most nurses nowadays probably don't stay with the same system for 30 years. If we are laid off, unjustly fired, or take a leave of absence we're usually at square one with all the newer nurses.

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Specializes in PCCN.
I assume your schoolteacher friend with the $88,000 student loan debt attended a private university when the same result could have been achieved by two years of community college and the final two years at an in-state regional university with affordable tuition.

.

No, it was a Suny school, but since she was an adult and had lost her job prior, she financed the whole 6 years- NYS have to have masters to teach.She did do her first 2 years at the community college.

I feel more sorry for the other girl- I'm not sure if/what she financed, but she did go to a private school in which tuition is 35-40 thou per year.Also masters is required.

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Many reasons have been given as to why hospitals are moving towards BSN's in nursing. From what I read many years ago it stated that there was a higher incidence of mistakes with ASN's compared to BSN's and that is why hospitals are moving towards higher education

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Specializes in PCCN.

This whole tuition conversation is so sad. I have been pursuing my RN- Bsn for a couple years now. By Paying for one class at a time!!! Because that is the only way I will do this. That meant there were some semesters I did not go to class. For a while, this had been ok with the college. Now, apparently they are making me reapply because I didnt go for two semesters. I just hope I didnt lose my spot ( adviser says not to worry) because going part time here is about 4000 a semester. It is the only state school in the area. All the others are private- at a tune of 30,000 + per year. Why on earth would I do RN- to BSN and pay 60,000 dollars or more that I DON"T HAVE and would have to get loans for????? All for a .25 cent an hour raise to please the hospital's Elitist status???

Who can argue with this??

Oh. btw hospital will "reimburse you" after you pass the class at only 3000.00 per year.You still have to pay for the classes upfront.

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