No answers in the ongoing debate about nursing education

For nearly half a decade there has been an ongoing debate about the education requirement for registered nurses. Nursing organizations such as the American Nurses Association and the National League of Nursing support a bachelor’s degree as the minimum preparation for registered nurses.

Currently, only a handful of hospitals require nurses to have a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). But the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs requires BSNs of all its nurses who want to be promoted.

To date, North Dakota is the only state to have passed legislation requiring a BSN for entry into practice, but even that requirement was rescinded by the state Legislature in 2003. The same year, well-known nurse researcher Linda Aiken published a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association that found hospitals with higher numbers of nurses with bachelor’s degrees or higher tended to have surgical patients who experienced lower mortality and failure-to-rescue rates.

In response to a proposal by the New York State Board of Nursing to mandate that its registered nurses acquire a BSN, the AFT passed a resolution in 2004. The resolution opposed any regulations that would prevent a licensed registered nurse from practicing because he or she did not have a BSN, or that would cause a reduction of status, salary or benefits in any way.

The resolution noted that while the AFT supports the concept of advanced education for all nurses, mandating that nurses earn bachelor’s degrees would have a damaging effect on the profession. Not only would a mandate create barriers to the recruitment and retention of nurses with associate’s degrees, it would further exacerbate the national shortage of nurses. There simply are too few nurse educators in the country to teach the large percentage of nurses who don’t have a BSN.

 The resolution also pointed out that all registered nurse candidates from approved nursing programs take the same national exam, regardless of the degree attained. Research shows that nurses with associate’s degrees and diplomas pass the exam at about the same rate as four-year graduates, which indicates a consistent level of competence among nurses.

Those who favor requiring a BSN to practice say it will advance the profession. However, those who are against it note that all registered nurses are educated to perform the same responsibilities. Every registered nurse has the same scope of practice.

What do you think? Share your thoughts with us at AFTHealthcare-feedback@aft.org.