NY & NJ to become BSN only?

AccelCNL, MSN, RN · Feb 25, 2010

This idea had been said a million times in year past however now would really be the worst time to do it. Most people used the hospitals tuition remission as the board to go back to school. With the lack of job or the cutting back on hours the idea just does not seem the best at this point.

Besides nursing school already have to worry about the dropping of MSN degrees and converting to only DNP within the next couple years. This added rule will just be a headache in the extreme.

DoGoodThenGo · Feb 25, 2010

First it was "if nurses stopped wearing caps and uniforms (by extension dressing like maids, waitresses and other service workers), they would get more respect.

Then it was if nursing developed a more strict professional discipline (which gave us nursing care plans, nursing diagnosis, et al), nurses would get higher respect.

Now, at least according to the above linked article, if all nurses have four year college degrees, the profession will gain more respect and equal footing with graduate and post graduate health care professionals.

So when is the last time a doctor stopped berating a nurse during his tirade upon noticing she had "BSN" on her name tag? When is the last time a patient was about ready to chuck full bed pan or basin, stopped because he realised he was dealing with a "BSN" nurse? When was the last time a lab produced results report faster (after the nurse has requested it several times in an hour or so), because she informed them they were dealing with a BSN nurse?

One need not multiply examples. We can debate if four years of education produces a better nurse than two or three, but at least to me, the idea that working conditions and respect for the profession will dramatically increase merely by increasing the educational requirements for entry seems far fetched.

My NYC :twocents:

WondeR.N. · Feb 27, 2010

DoGoodThenGo...sadly, you are correct. A nurse is a nurse is just-a-nurse in the eyes of many. I am not typically one to blame things on sexism, but the truth is that the majority of nurses are still women, and until we have more men in our ranks, nursing will still be seen as "women's work." Thankfully things are changing and more guys are becoming nurses. I say this not because the perception of nurses will change (I don't need some arrogant jerk to tell me I'm smart and skilled), but because more diversity can only make the profession even greater than it already is.

As for the BSN vs. ADN thing, I'm sure that eventually all nurses will be required to have a BSN and they'll exempt already licensed ADNs. In my area, it's nearly impossible to find a hospital that doesn't have a BSN-only hiring policy (which is why I'm still looking for a job.) It's fine if the requirements change (more education is always a good thing), but ONLY if the BSN programs take a good long look at the reasons why graduates of 2 year ADN programs at "lowly" community colleges often have much higher NCLEX pass rates (in my area ALWAYS higher than the Ivy League schools around here). Simply put, grads from the two year programs are better prepared for entry into clinical practice. In my opinion, the BSN programs do a much better job of introducing research methodology, management and the business of health care (sorely lacking in ADN programs), which is really valuable stuff, but it doesn't help their grads when they go to take their licensing exam. If the BSN programs can retool their curriculums to include more clinical, skill-focused training while retaining their broader research and business courses, they'd be perfect. That's my two cents.

PS: Before I get irate responses from BSNs thinking I'm just some bitter ADN grad belittling their degrees, I am NOT. I already have a Bachelor's in another field and think more school is a good thing--I'm just comparing the clinical prep of the different programs. Both have their pluses and minuses.