Creating the Professional Nurse

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Creating the Professional Nurse
Nursing encompasses several levels of education and licensure. For decades the differentiation between these levels has been debated, primarily between the differentiation of the Associates degree in Nursing (ADN) and the Bachelors of Science degree in Nursing (BSN). The associate’s degree, which began with the intention of creating a technical nurse, has developed into being “equivalent” to a bachelors degree (Hess, 1996). The two degrees however are not equivalent, the bachelors educated nurse receives two years education beyond the associate, in the liberal arts and upper division nursing courses
Both the ADN and the BSN take the same licensing exam, receive the same credentials and often have little pay and benefit distinction (Hess, 1996). What appears to have little difference superficially actually has significant implications on the health of our nation, efficiency of practice, and role nursing plays in the healthcare community. The impact that this difference in degrees has is why the bachelor’s degree in Nursing is the absolute minimum requirement for entry into practice. This can ensure that the field of nursing is a field that is professional, scientifically based, and culturally aware.
Impact on Nursing as a Profession
The use of the same national licensing exam and credentials on two different levels of education causes a discontinuity in the type of nurse that is titled as a registered nurse.
The added courses in liberal arts taken by the BSN prepared nurse promotes learning as an aspect to life, opening doorways to advanced degrees (Jacobs, DiMattio, Bishop & Fields, 1998).
The liberal arts also prepare the nurse to be more versatile in their ways of thinking, creatively approac...

... middle of paper ...

...of education requirements upwards to a BSN, there are some barriers that must be addressed to allow a seamless transition. While there is a role out there for the associate’s degree in the spectrum it is not the autonomous role of the registered nurse.

Works Cited

David, T. (2008). Should the entry into nursing practice be the baccalaureate degree. ACORN Journal, 87(2), 611-620.
Hess, J. (1996). Education for entry into practice: An ethical perspective. Journal of Professional Nursing, 12(5), 289-296.
Jacobs, L., DiMattio, M. K., Bishop, T. L., & Fields, S. D. (1998). The baccalaureate degree in nursing as an entry-level requirement for professional nursing practice. Journal of Professional Nursing, 14(4), 225-233.
Schipman, D., & Hootan, J. (2010). Employers prefer bsn nurses: But where’s the financial compensation?. Nurse Education Today, 30(2), 105-106.

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