Grand Canyon University
Associate Degree versus Baccalaureate Degree Nurses
In order to be a registered nurse you must obtain a license through the NCLEX-RN licensure examination. The opportunity to take this exam is to be from an accredited program, wither it be a diploma in nursing, an Associates Degree in Nursing (ADN), or a Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing (BSN). The ADN program typically requires about two to three years of nursing school and focuses more on tasks and clinical skills. The BSN program is roughly four years and focuses not only on tasks and clinical skills but also focuses on knowledge, theory and research. The BSN is deemed to encompass what nursing is all …show more content…
Primarily, a BSN took about 5 years to complete the program; 2 years general education and 3 years of nursing education, now it is about 4 years to complete. The BSN offers a more broader scope of practice by offering a more in-depth look into physical and social sciences, public and community health, humanities, nursing research and nursing management (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2014). By having a more in-depth perspective the BSN nurse will also be more culturally, economically, and politically aware. The BSN nurse is also able to understand social issues that can affect their patients and help educate …show more content…
For example, there is a 54-year-old male, who is a fire fighter and has a spouse and three children ranging from 21 to 15 years of age. His physician approaches an ADN nurse and explains to her that her patient has stage 3 renal cancer and that he is going to inform him now. The nurse enters the room with the physician and is at bedside while their patient is being told about his diagnosis. The ADN nurse will most likely ask the patient if he needs anything, will linger to see if the patient wants to talk, and will try and finish the rest of the tasks they may have. The ADN nurse was there for the patient and attempted to console him if needed, but they may have missed the bigger