Nursing comprises the largest health care workforce in the United States. According to the Health Resources and Services Administration survey, there are more than 3 million registered nurses (RN) nationwide. The survey also shows that 50.0% of the workforce holds a baccalaureate (BSN) or graduate degree while 36.1% earned an associate degree (ADN) and 13.9% a diploma in nursing (AACN, 2013). There are multiple pathways available for one to become a nurse. Today, the ADN and BSN degrees are the most common pathway selected by future nurses. This paper’s primary focus will be to comprehend the competency differences of a nurse with an Associate’s degree in Nursing (ADN) vs. Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN).…
The field of nursing has come a long way. It was once considered to be a profession for that of the less fortunate. But as the years went by the field of nursing has made drastic changes in that of schooling and duties of the nurse. No longer has the field of nursing considered for those who has nothing else to do or those of less fortunate, but over the years education has played an important role in the success of this profession. In the eighteen century, nursing were considered to be more hands on, but theories saw the need for a more formal education. Over the years, there have been debates about the entry level for nursing. Some say there’s no difference between the associate (ADN) and the baccalaureate (BSN) degree. In the following paragraphs I will expound on the differences between the ADN and the BSN degree.…
Orsolini-Hain, L. (n.d.)Retrieved from http://www.nsna.org/CareerCenter/Fuss.aspx What’s all the Fuss? Working Towards a Baccalaureate or Graduate Degree in Nursing…
It takes a lot of courage to let go of what is known, familiar, and comfortable. Change is a driving force in everyone. Like a butterfly, individuals in the nursing field may go through similar stages of metamorphosis, which is a process of growth, change, and development, (Wikipedia Foundation, 2006. Nurses have a vast amount of opportunity for growth and change in the healthcare field. “ The nursing profession has often been viewed as target of change rather than a force that proposes, leads, and implements change”(Habel,2005). Many individuals are choosing to evolve and expand their careers and obtain their bachelor’s degree in nursing. While the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) performs much of the same skills, the student professional nurse must refine his or her skills in clinical judgment, collaboration, leadership, and delegation to effectively care for their patients as a professional nurse.…
My desire to pursue a career in health care is greatly influenced by its unlimited opportunities for career development and the desire to impact another person’s life positively. As a kid, I always had a burning desire to become a nurse or a medical doctor but my parents’ influence and their perception of the engineering profession while in Nigeria lured me away. I trained and practiced as a Materials Engineer back in Nigeria, where I worked as a research and development officer for five years. However, coming to the United States created the turning point in my life. I searched for engineering jobs unsuccessfully for many months, and none was forthcoming despite availability of many job openings in nursing and healthcare related fields. In order to confirm my readiness to pursue nursing as a career, I entered a Practical Nursing program at the Wilbur Wright College in Chicago. At this time, I was still driving cab to support myself, while I dropped it completely upon graduation and passing LPN board examination.…
Nursing profession is the largest division of the healthcare employees. Nurses play an important role when it comes to patient care. There are many obstacles that prevent nurses from being able to respond effectively to constantly changing healthcare system and to make changes and advance health, these obstacles need to be overcome. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation along with Institute of Medicine (IOM) proposed to assess the need to transform the nursing profession in 2010. The report included making…
References: Blais, K. K., & Hayes, J. S. (2011). Professional nursing practice: Concepts and perspectives (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Orsolini-Hain, L. (2008). What’s all the Fuss? Working towards a Baccalaureate or Graduate Degree in Nursing. Retrieved from http://www.nsna.org/careercenter/fuss.aspx…
The journey will be long and difficult, yet we all know this is the pathway into the future of nursing. The Licensed practical nurse has slowly faded into the background; the duties once performed now removed from the scope of practice. The LPN's are being forced to either return to school to obtain an ADN, BSN, or MSN in order to continue working in the nursing field or remain stagnant and have no hope of career advancement has created a rise in the LPN to RN-BSN programs now offered. This paper will allow you to see this journey through the eyes of the LPN.…
In order to achieve this future goal, I will increase my nursing education by seeking to obtain a Nurse Practitioners degree in nursing, which would help to provide me with the knowledge and skills needed to manage nursing staff, as well as to effectively assist physicians in carrying out their duties. In addition, I will seek to obtain as much experience, skill, and knowledge as possible, by working at all of the departments of my health care organization, which will help me to obtain the skills and knowledge that will be required to assume the increasing responsibilities of the future. After obtaining my Nurse Practitioners degree in nursing, I plan to pursue a doctoral degree in this field, so that I…
A doctoral degree in nursing will also allow me to practice at the full scope and independence now granted to the advanced practice nurse. With this autonomy I plan to not only create significant connections with my patients, but also promote wellness in the community through research and implementation of evidence-based practices. As a primary care provider I can make a lasting impact on my patients, their families, and the community by offering the most current practices available and providing education to improve patient outcomes.…
It has been an ongoing debate for years as to what the minimum level of education nurses should have when entering the healthcare workforce. Nursing is one of the few professions that has many avenues into the same role, title, and employment (Institute of Medicine of the National Academies [IOM], 2010). At the present time, there is still a hospital based diploma programs, Associate degree programs, and finally…
Throughout the decades, the nursing field of has brought millions and millions of people to above average paying jobs. Along with that, opportunities arise every day, and await all degree holders of nursing, especially those students that graduated from top nursing schools, and since nursing is proved to be in an endless great demand, seems more nursing schools grow and multiply every year like mushrooms. When you get ready to become a nurse and get a…
Nursing is a profession where people are brought together, usually at a time of vulnerability. Nurses, like the patients they care for, are constantly facing challenges, yet for nurses those challenges are often directed at their academic and skill capabilities. Due to individual and general population health needs changing, our health care system is consistently expanding, and it is necessary that nurses know more and be effectively trained to provide care in a revolutionized organization. A modest, but expanding, amount of hospitals are requiring all newly graduated nurses to have a bachelor’s degree in nursing or higher at the time of hire and indicators are that many more hospitals will require the same in years soon to come (ANA, 2013).…
Along with the millennium comes extraordinary challenges and opportunities. These challenges and opportunities are available to both the nursing profession and academic institutions responsible for preparing nurses of the next generation. According to Wals, “Universities in particular have a responsibility in creating space for alternative thinking and emergence of new ideas, as well as in critically exploring old ones.” Wals also takes the…
The millennium has become the metaphor for the extraordinary challenges and opportunities available to the nursing profession and to those academic institutions responsible for preparing the next generation of nurses. Signal change is all around us, defining not only what we teach, but also how we teach our students. Transformations taking place in nursing and nursing education have been driven by major socioeconomic factors, as well as by developments in health care delivery and professional issues unique to nursing (Crowley, 2013).…