Professional Nursing Education Case Study

1. In the Essentials, what, if anything, surprised you, is new to you or did you find confusing or unclear about the role of the BSN nurse? As I read The Essential of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2008) I found that most of the material was not foreign to me as we have become familiar with it throughout our courses here at NAU. I did find essential V as a surprise as it states that BSN nurse should be familiar with the financial aspects of healthcare, which was surprising as so far we have been taught to not worry about that aspect as we are treating the patient in the hospital setting. I suppose that this aspect might apply primarily outside of the hospital setting where the nurse might take part in obtaining approvals for necessary items for the patient and has to deal with the insurance aspect of it or lack of insurance for that matter. I do see where we could play a part in the “reimbursement [of] the delivery of health care services”
(American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2008, p. 20) as if we do not document appropriately the reimbursement of services can be affected as well as being vigilant in completing charges of patient supplies to further the reimbursement process to the facility.

2. So, why is a BSN degree important?

Learning how a BSN impacts nursing was eye opening.
It is not that I thought it was not imperative to obtain a BSN degree, but I suppose that reading the evidence that was presented in the articles just solidified why it is so important. In The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2008) the different aspects of what is expected from the BSN graduate nurse are exemplified and related to the content that is being taught in the classroom setting of a BSN program, for example the expectations of clinical care in the article are the exact expectations that we see in our syllabus. The diversity of courses taught impacts the quality of care the nurse can deliver to the patient. It is of utmost importance to be able to incorporate a holistic nursing approach that integrates the patient and their family as a whole and this can be obtained through the completion of the BSN
courses.
This brought me to reflect on all the clinical courses that we have taken thus far throughout the semesters and to think of how the new information I acquire in each of them molds how I deliver patient care and how that justifies the importance of the BSN. Every area of study of the BSN program can be applied to the ability of the nurse to deliver proficient patient care. As stated in The Future of Nursing (Institute of Medicine, 2010) the need for higher educated nurses is essential as nursing now not only consists of acute care but has evolved into caring for chronic conditions, as the population of older adults has increased dramatically furthermore justifying the need for the baccalaureate nurse.