Texas: Methodist Hospital Moves To Hire Only RNS' with BS degree

Nursing Students ADN/BSN

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New nurses at Methodist will need bachelor's degrees

By CINDY GEORGE

The Methodist Hospital has joined the movement toward requiring their registered nurses to have bachelor's degrees.

Since December, the Texas Medical Center institution has required all newly hired experienced nurses to have a four-year degree. This helps the hospital create a nursing work force equipped to treat patients with more complicated conditions such as transplants while handling expanding technology and an ever-increasing knowledge base, said Ann Scanlon McGinity, Methodist's chief nursing executive and senior vice president for operations.

"At the patient's bedside, the risk is high with very sick patients. The margin for error is very small. You have to have people who think and put together information very critically and very quickly. I don't think people with a two-year degree can do all that," said McGinity, who has a master's degree in nursing and a doctorate in developmental psychology. "The whole notion is creating an environment where education and lifelong learning is a requirement as opposed to getting a license or a degree and that's the end of it."

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7017108.html

This is so sad. Being a nurse is hard enough without labeling each other.

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This is so sad. Being a nurse is hard enough without labeling each other.

The labeling has always been there in one form or another, in times past it would have been stripes (bands) on caps.:D

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I want to know where there are still "2 year degrees" !!

In order to get into ADN programs around here you have to have the pre-reqs done and nearly all gen-ed too which adds at least 1 year to the so-called 2 year degree. I get sick of people saying "those two year degrees"

My program pre-reqs : A&P I and II, nutrition, Dev psych, college algebra, Chem I, Micro, plus gen ed.

My friends who did the BSN only spent the last 2 of it in nursing courses- the first 2 were gen-ed and pre-reqs. That's why you can do a BSN in 14 months if you have a previous degree- all the gen ed is done.

I am NOT going to say that the programs are equal...they are different in many ways. BUT I would like people to understand the amount of time and level of work an ADN can take.

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.
I want to know where there are still "2 year degrees" !!

In order to get into ADN programs around here you have to have the pre-reqs done and nearly all gen-ed too which adds at least 1 year to the so-called 2 year degree. I get sick of people saying "those two year degrees"

My program pre-reqs : A&P I and II, nutrition, Dev psych, college algebra, Chem I, Micro, plus gen ed.

My friends who did the BSN only spent the last 2 of it in nursing courses- the first 2 were gen-ed and pre-reqs. That's why you can do a BSN in 14 months if you have a previous degree- all the gen ed is done.

I am NOT going to say that the programs are equal...they are different in many ways. BUT I would like people to understand the amount of time and level of work an ADN can take.

True, an associate degree is not a fair degree for the amount of work. My ADN was 88 credits, and one of my instructors said the NLN was forcing the school to reduce the number of required credits for future classes because it was too many for an associate degree. I said, "GOOD!"

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yep- people are shocked when they get into the program and it's a full time job- you spend WAY more time on campus, in lecture, lab, clinicals than you get credit hours for.

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I wonder what happens to people with a different bachelors degree and an ADN...? I'll have a BS in psychology this December so I have no desire to do another bachelors. I've had enough general education and don't see why a 2 year degree wouldn't be sufficient for someone in my position. I guess they would expect us to do the more expensive 2 year accelerated BSN programs... The 2nd degree BSN in my area isn't liked by many students b/c it's full of "useless fluff" that doesn't help them with the NCLEX. The ADN programs have similar pass rates.

Please avoid this comment. People work hard for their BSN and people work hard for their ADN. Neither degree is full of useless fluff. :twocents:

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Specializes in floor to ICU.

New nurses at Methodist will need bachelor's degrees:

“At the patient's bedside, the risk is high with very sick patients. The margin for error is very small. You have to have people who think and put together information very critically and very quickly. I don't think people with a two-year degree can do all that,”

Fine. However, how about the other numerous Methodist Hospitals in the area that currently have ADNs at the bedside?

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.
I want to know where there are still "2 year degrees" !!

In order to get into ADN programs around here you have to have the pre-reqs done and nearly all gen-ed too which adds at least 1 year to the so-called 2 year degree. I get sick of people saying "those two year degrees"

.

In many places, you can still get an ADN in 2 years. In fact, in my area, there are programs (for-profit schools) that will give a student an ADN in about 15 months!

However ... I fully understand your point. Some of the ADN programs have added so many courses that they now take 3 years of full time study. I see 2 main reasons for this:

1. A desire to include more "general ed. courses" and pre-req's in order to keep up with the demands of the profession. (In other words, raising their requirements to be more like BSN's) In other words, they recognize that the RN role requires more education than they can provide well in only 2 years. Isn't that a strong argument for making the BSN the standard education for an RN? The people who should be upset about this is the ADN students and grads -- who put in the time and effort to take the classes and learn the material, but graduate with an ADN rather than a BSN. Those students should prefer to take a few more classes get a BSN to begin with. Instead, they take 2/3 - 3/4 of a BSN program, but only end up with an ADN to show for it. They should support the standardization of the requirements to avoid the rip-off they have been a victim of.

2. Get more money from the students. Once again, ADN students and alumni should be angry about this. The school makes money by adding courses to the curriculum -- but doesn't add quite enough courses to qualify to award a BSN.

The ADN was developed as a 2-year degree. Some schools are ripping-off their students by requiring extra coursework. The students lose out because they pay more money and invest more time than necessary to get an ADN. They graduate with the lower level credential, but invested more than necessary to get it.

Simultaneously, you have for-profit schools offering "accelerated" ADN programs (15-18 months) that provide the bare minimum required to meet the BON requirements for NCLEX.. These students pay lots of money to graduate with an ADN, but with a bare minimum of knowledge and skills.

Both types of students hold the same degree -- ADN. But clearly, they have differing levels of preparation. Then we throw in the BSN and MSN direct-entry programs. All take the same NCLEX and are "entry level" nurses. It's ridiculous. We need more clarity, if not fewer options. And the ADN grads who have taken extra course for no extra credential should be among those who understand that need the most.

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Specializes in PeriOp, ICU, PICU, NICU.
Fine. Require a BSN. But first show substantial wage increase to validate this. Give a BSN $5.00/hr more to start. Good luck with that.

I agree, but they don't really have to or will be inclined to anytime soon. There are way too many new grads out there (large amount of the relocating to TX to find a job), and many possess a BSN. Not to mention all those who are willing to work for 'whatever' in order to just finally land a job. Heck, some have verbalized willing to work for CNA pay 'just to get their foot in the door'. :mad:

Hospital administrators are not that st-oo-pid. unfortunately. ;)

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Specializes in PeriOp, ICU, PICU, NICU.

"At the patient's bedside, the risk is high with very sick patients. The margin for error is very small. You have to have people who think and put together information very critically and very quickly. I don't think people with a two-year degree can do all that,"

That in itself is just so disrespectful of them. I wonder what all the Diploma or ADN nurses think. Especially those who started as a diploma or ADN and happened to earn their BSN later, yet work under the same valuable role.

All the BSN evidence base..........makes me wonder really.

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I agree, but they don't really have to or will be inclined to anytime soon. There are way too many new grads out there (large amount of the relocating to TX to find a job), and many possess a BSN. Not to mention all those who are willing to work for 'whatever' in order to just finally land a job. Heck, some have verbalized willing to work for CNA pay 'just to get their foot in the door'. :mad:

Hospital administrators are not that st-oo-pid. unfortunately. ;)

well said!!. i am actually one of those nurses with a BSN relocating to Texas and most of my mates are relocating too with BSN's

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Specializes in ER, L&D, ICU, LTC, HH.

"At the patient's bedside, the risk is high with very sick patients. The margin for error is very small. You have to have people who think and put together information very critically and very quickly. I don't think people with a two-year degree can do all that,"

I agree this is very disrespectful. I have been a RN for 25 years with an Associate Degree. I am working on my BSN now and have found nothing in the courses that helps me as a bedside nurse. The only difference I see is management skills. I have always been a supporter of ANA and I am thinking of withdrawing because they require BSN for Certifications now. I think at the bedside the AD to BSN debate is mute. If RN's want to do something to better themselves they should unite not tear each other down. It is very sad. There is way too much passive aggressiveness in nursing. Too much in fighting. Enough people if you want an argument go be an attorney; we became nurses to be care takers not ladder climbers!

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