RN, ADN, BSN, LPN, LVN, ....... Does it matter??

1TachyRN, RN · May 21, 2009

:deadhorse

SteffersRN87, BSN, RN · May 21, 2009

not every institution pays more for a BSN... i am from the pittsburgh area and very few hospitals pay more for a BSN... and even so, 15 or 20 cents extra... but you are often more in debt after a BSN program (depending)... and furthermore... the definition states specialized training... it does not say that it must be consistent... i had specialized training, so does an ADN nurse, and so does a nurse with a BSN... and i did have a community health course and leadership course and nursing research was integrated into every course... and we had a large amount of theory... we were accountable for much more than the 16 hours of theory a week in class...

SteffersRN87, BSN, RN · May 21, 2009

I had more clinical hours than that in my BSN program. I always had at LEAST 24 hours of clinicals a week for 2 years. My last semester when we did 36 hours a week of clinincals for Leadership for 16 weeks.
Now a year out and working in the real world, I feel all my "bookwork" and knowledge has helped me much more than my clinicals ever did---knowing and understanding the problem has served me FAR better than skills most anyone can learn after you do them a couple times.
I started in the ICU as did a lot of my classmates and other new grads....I didn't know any who couldn't take a BP and most of us new grads pushed code drugs just fine thanks. And even if someone is struggling at first with something is that not ok? Most of the medical residents I work with struggle everyday to learn and understand things too.

Just FYI... i had 1504 hours of clinical time... i calculated 1300some for yours... and clinical experience does matter... you need to be able to pull your classroom theory together into the clinical setting... skills come, but clinical knowledge requires more clinical experience...

beachbutterfly · May 21, 2009

I hope that you pro-BSN people do not take offense to this. I am a diploma graduate. I went to a hospital-based nursing program, where we had a lot of theory and clinical packed into two years...
Nursing Concepts 1 & 2 - 8 to 16 hours of theory & 16 hours of clinical per week (15 weeks each)
Med/Surg (15 weeks) and specialities (8 weeks each) - 16 hours of theory & 16 hours of clinical per week
Leadership & Transitions - 24 hours of clinical for 6 weeks
I feel that I received an excellent education. My class had a 95% NCLEX pass rate. And, I felt clinically prepared and into the swing of things as a GN. Now, I began as a GN with a few BSN grads, and I was not impressed. I feel that many BSN programs do not put emphasis on clinical experience but rather theory. Theory is a good thing, but you really need the practice to be well-prepared and in nursing that counts. Furthermore, I feel that a lot of BSN programs put emphasis on things that are not really of the highest importance for preparing students to be professional nurses. Many BSN graduates that I began working in the ICU with were stumbling over taking a blood pressure while I was pushing drugs in a code.
Now, I am not sure as to whether or not BSN programs teach their students to hate on use diploma and ADN nurses, but it really needs to stop. First of all, we all have the same title, RN. Some of us have more TIME put into our educations. I think that we need to stop this arguement here and now. We all do the same job out of school and then go from there. Just because you have a BSN does not mean that you a better than anyone else, and the minute that you feel so I hope you are proven wrong.
If we didn't have diploma and ADN programs, we would not have people in their 30's and 40's with families becoming nurses as their second career. We would not have economically disadvantaged people coming into the profession. We need to realize that diploma and ADN programs help the nursing shortage. Nursing is diverse. We should keep all educational options open.
Now, on the LPN/LVN issue. That should not even be classified into the same categoy as this blog. They have a different scope and role than RN's. Not sure if they informed you of that in your BSN programs or not. But they have a valuable role, especially in LTC. They are the ones passing medications and giving care to 30 or so patients. If you want to be the RN giving out 30 medications during the day, then continue with your argument to get rid of them. A nurse is a nurse is a nurse. End of story. If you prefer titles, then please identify yourself as a RN or LPN/LVN.
Nursing is a profession. According to the Oxford English Dictionary - "A profession is a vocation founded upon specialized educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain"

Keep in mind that both ADN and BSN are not adequately prepared to enter the nursing scene.With that said I totally understand how the theory play an important part in nursing practice yet I feel dissapointed by the little amount of practical preparation provided by my nursing school.

showbizrn · May 21, 2009

oh jeez. here we go again.
i wish we had one educational path to rn licensure. i'm not saying what that one degree should be...just that it should be one, so the profession could be unified.

:yeah: :yeah: :yeah:

thank you!

cursedandblessed · May 21, 2009

i'm currently in an adn program. while it may look like a two year program on paper in the college guide (though i don't know anyone who could pull 18-21 credit hours doing 2 clinicals a week and taking a lab science and actually pass-we've had those who've tried, and they don't make it), it is more like a 3-4 year full time program.

the only thing i would've needed to go into the bsn program in my area, would have been 1 biology class. all of the other general ed classes were the same. i spent 3 semesters completing them before i started the nursing classes.

i chose the program i did because community technical college is less expensive (about a 1/4 of the cost at my local well respected bsn college) and about 1/2-2/3's of my tuition is state funded through the lottery.

pagandeva2000, LPN · May 22, 2009

Here we go again...

Of course, I advocate for LPNs because I don't wish to become an RN. We all exist, and rather than say that one is better suited than another, we should appreciate the talents that each discipline in nursing brings to the table. Does this mean that we don't deserve to be employed, to render the best care we can within our scope of practice? To be considered as a problem or hinderance because we did not make the same decisions as the Registered Nurses? To perform the more mundane tasks of nursing (as well as accept the legal responsibilities that goes along with our licensure) so that the Registered Nurses can focus on their advanced tasks?

Whether LPN, Diploma, ADN, BSN levels should exist or not doesn't matter because we are ALL here. I'd rather see us support each other than beat each other down.

Scrubby · May 22, 2009

To be honest I find the US system really quite confusing.

In South Australia we have Registered Nurses and we have Enrolled Nurses (LPN). RN's supervise EN's and have a much wider scope of practice.

To become an RN in Australia you do a three year Bachelor of Nursing degree. We don't have different degree types like the BSN, ADN, MSN.

You can go on to become an RN midwife, mental health specialist and nurse practitioner through extra study but initially to become an RN it's the same degree.

feralnostalgia · May 22, 2009

I heard a lot of people opting for the BSN program in my city because they said the ADN program at my school was too hard...I'm planning to end up with more than a BSN either way, but I'm starting with an ADN, and for me it makes more sense.

If I've got food on the table and am doing the right thing for patients, I don't care what the rest of the world thinks. they have extremely high opinions of lawyers as professionals...obviously reputation isn't everything.