"To BSN or Not to BSN That is the question." Should BSN be minimal requirement?

[nurseactivist]

There are states in the eastern part of the US, who are actively debating whether to require a BSN as a minimal requirement to become an RN. If this becomes law, should currently licensed RNs be "grandfathered in?"

While I hold a BS in Nursing, I personally do not agree with mandating a change. I have seen nurses: the good, the bad, and the ugly who are diploma grads, 2 year college grads and 4+ year grads.

What do you think?

[Nanceenurse123]

I've never understood why this is such a complicated issue. Canada has made BSN the minimum and it seems to work well.

It shouldn't be complicated at all. No one likes to be told they must go back to school, but if you look at the overall picture, more education is better for everyone--the nurses themselves, the patients they care for, their families, the profession itself...

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

I've never understood why this is such a complicated issue. Canada has made BSN the minimum and it seems to work well.

It shouldn't be complicated at all. No one likes to be told they must go back to school, but if you look at the overall picture, more education is better for everyone--the nurses themselves, the patients they care for, their families, the profession itself...

Except Canada never forced anyone to go back to school- all of those nurses already licensed were grandfathered in. I think that's where a lot of the current opposition comes from- a lot of nurses are so close to retirement that going back to school is going to be a financial burden that they will never be able to recoup, which is why several of those I work with are opting for early retirement when the BSN becomes required by my employer. A younger student is going to have the opportunity to benefit financially or at least not be paying on student loans during retirement.