RN to BSN orientation

Trauma Columnist · Jun 12, 2004

I'm glad you had such a positive experience. I did the BSN for me - no one else. Although as I get older I do know I want more opportunities and the BSN (and now MSN) will give me more options. Good luck - you can do it.

deathnurse · Jun 22, 2004

Ya' wanna' be a nurse? You passed the test. You want more letters after your name? Become a professional in another field. It's folly to stick on BSN after the RN. There is NOTHING that an ADN can do that can't be done by a BSN, so don't consider yourself a lessor person after you spend the time and money on the "credential." You'll be wiser though. And more learned. You'll know of better ways to invest your time and efforts than in persuit of a lofty nursing degree.

Good gawd, don't get a masters. Or a doctorette. You'll only be steered towards a lower valued teaching position, with a lower income (but will probably at least have a retirement, not like a hospital nurse.)

nursemaa · Jun 22, 2004

Ya' wanna' be a nurse? You passed the test. You want more letters after your name? Become a professional in another field. It's folly to stick on BSN after the RN. There is NOTHING that an ADN can do that can't be done by a BSN, so don't consider yourself a lessor person after you spend the time and money on the "credential." You'll be wiser though. And more learned. You'll know of better ways to invest your time and efforts than in persuit of a lofty nursing degree.
Good gawd, don't get a masters. Or a doctorette. You'll only be steered towards a lower valued teaching position, with a lower income (but will probably at least have a retirement, not like a hospital nurse.)

Did it ever occur to you that some people get the additional education for reasons other than job opportunities? Maybe it's about accomplishment, personal growth, and personal goals. Education is not the enemy, and just may prove to be the factor that gives nursing a little more respect. Don't discourage others from pursuing their goals just because you don't have the same goals. Geez! :uhoh21:

Trauma Columnist · Jun 22, 2004

deathnurse - I stand behind my decision to get more education. As I mentioned - I did it for me - no one else. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and my comments were meant as encouragement to the original poster. Also - an MSN does provide more opportunities. When I worked in Las Vegas (Sunrise Hospital) - I know this to be the case there also. Good luck...

nursemaa - thanks for backing me up. The one great thing about nursing is that we can have different ways of getting to the same goal.

Loribabble · Jun 22, 2004

Nursemaa and Trauma RUs - thanks for the encourgaging words!

As for you deathnurse... maybe you should think next time before you spew some hateful words towards someones life that you know NOTHING about.

I personally HAVE to have my BSN because I am working towards being a missionary nurse in Zimbabwe.... THEY require it for me to be liscenced there. And while I would LOVE to get my Family Nurse Practitioner - the mission needs me asap so I will need to do that at a later date.

We all have our reasons for furthering our education... and we should be supprting one another instead of tearing each other down. No matter what degree one goes after - it will always require that person to grow and expand their horizons - which is ALWAYS a good thing!

Trauma Columnist · Jun 22, 2004

Wow Lori - what a wonderful ambition! Do you mind if I ask what agency you are going over there with? Is it a church-sponsored mission?

Tweety, BSN, RN · Jun 22, 2004

Good luck Loribabble! That's awesome the experience was so good.

I've always wanted a BSN and am going to get started myself. I've applied and my application is complete, but I've some coreqs to take and won't start nursing courses until next year, if I still want to go that route.

I'm going to do it for me, not for the money or anything else. I do think it will give me options I don't have now. Who knows 20 years from now what I'll be doing and what the market will be like.

deathnurse, if I go for the BSN, it's not because I consider myself lesser than as you imply. I'm not sure about your claim there is NOTHING one can do with ADN that you can do with a BSN. Might be true in your neck of the woods, but if I want to be a clinical nurse educator here, I have to have a BSN, no option. That's just one option for me in the future with a BSN.

But let's not highjack this thread and get into the ADN/BSN debate because that would be rude an inappropriate.

Trauma Columnist · Jun 22, 2004

Hey Tweety - glad you decided to go back to school...I remember from other threads you had been considering it. Where I work (we are trying for Magnet status) you have to have a BSN in order to do anything but staff nurse. They actually prefer an MSN for educators. I need to hurry and finish mine before they require a PhD! lol

Tweety, BSN, RN · Jun 22, 2004

Hey Tweety - glad you decided to go back to school...I remember from other threads you had been considering it. Where I work (we are trying for Magnet status) you have to have a BSN in order to do anything but staff nurse. They actually prefer an MSN for educators. I need to hurry and finish mine before they require a PhD! lol

I've been off again/on again with the BSN for a while. Mainly because I'm lazy and don't want to work very hard. It's been seven years since my last courses I was taking for the BSN, and it's time to get started again. Hope I can stay motivated. I work at a Magnet hospital, all the managers, educators, directors, employee health nurses, etc. are all BSNs. ADNs need not apply. I love direct patient care, but whose to say when I'm 65 and have to work another ten years because I'm too poor to retire and there's no social security that I won't want to be doing something else? That's why I'm doing it.

Good luck to you too. :)

Loribabble · Jun 22, 2004

Thanks.... though I have to admit I feel like I am the one who is getting the better end of the deal. Less stress, get to LIVE life, the shona (the people we work with) are AWESOME!

It is a Church of Christ/Christian church mission in rural Zimbabwe -the hospital has been there over 30 yrs. All of the evangelism work has been turned over to locally trained ministers - so have the schools and there is only one foreign missionary left - and she is a nurse practioner. All the other staff (Drs, nurses, etc) are nationals (african). I am currently working on getting my personal website up but the missions "official" one is http://www.chidamoyo.org - chidamoyo loosely (very) translated means "where the heart is satisfied."

To put it nicely the country is going to hell in a handbasket. The president has turned dictator and has been able to turn one of the jewels of Africa into dispair. Zimbabwe was the ONE country that when it got its independence from Great Brittian -actually thrived. Good infrastructure, had food surplus to help other counties in famine, decent healthcare etc. But.... anyone and everyone who is able (all the educated) have left the country - talk about a nursing shortage - our 85 bed hospital usually has only 1 nurse on the "floor". Granted - things are different - they don't do assessments etc - but still - they RUN! We used to send pts into Harare (capitol) to see specialists - but they have left so "we" are now the speciallists, I think the doc is learning new surgeries all the time... we were only doing hydorcele and hernia repairs, c-sections, d and c's etc, stuff like that... just got a letter from Kathy saying they recently saved a girls legs/mobility because they were able to plate her femur back together.... the government hospitals actually refer their pts to us... the little backwoods hospital in the middle of nowhere! We also just got access to some HIV anti-virals....

See roughly 6000pts/month, 100 births a month - and all of this with one doctor and one nurse practioner! (still way less stress than here!)

I will be going to be an extra pair of hands -mostly doing stuff so that the floor nurses don't have to be pulled from the floor/hospital -(helping in OR, well-baby immunization clinics, school health screenings, health education, minor procedures etc. It is a blast! I have been 3 times- twice for 3 months and this last time for 6 months.

Loribabble · Jun 22, 2004

Hi Tweety - good for you and you go for it! I too like floor nursing, but never saw it as something I was going to do long term - I would have gotten my BSN anyway and gotten into public health or something else along those lines. I really like being an educator/health promoter- I would really like to teach clinicals - NOT lecture... I love precepting.... I am all for anything that makes you learn and become more well rounded! I have friend who is in her 50's who just finished the program... she had been a nurse for 30yrs - and absolutely loved going back to school.

I still have pre-reqs that I get to take on top of the program... SO glad that I am single, no family etc - cause I think I am suicidal - taking 20cr this fall! Glad my unit is usually quiet overnight (small obs - 5-7pts/2RNs) and that my boss is so supportive - at least I can get some work done there!