The Need for Nurses Qualified at a Bachelor Level - Essay Example

? The Need for Nurses Qualified at a Bachelor Level The need to have nurses qualified at bachelors level is a widely discussed topic, with nurses requiring a bachelor level qualification to practice being a fairly new development within the healthcare industry. Aiken, Clarke, Cheung, Sloane & Silber (2003) prepared an investigation into the levels of bachelor prepared nurses and the corresponding experience levels in Pennsylvania. As part of this research, they examined the levels of risk-adjusted mortality and failure to rescue on the part of the resident nurses in this area, and how this related to the level of education that these nurses had. The most interesting finding was that, with all variables taken into account, nurses with a bachelor’s degree corresponded to a 5% decrease in the likelihood of patient death and failure to rescue on the part of these nurses. Using this as a basis, it is evident that having bachelor prepared nurses is important in maintaining the health of patients. Sasichay-Akkadechanunt, Scalzi, & Jawad (2003) found similar results. This study examined data from 2531 patients in various surgical and ward units in one large hospital in Thailand. The patients were split into four major categories (disease of the heart, disease of the lung, all types of cancer and cerebrovascular diseases) and data was observationally taken from their charts, as well as information from the nursing staff. The results showed again that there was a decrease in in-hospital mortality with bachelor prepared nurses. It should be noted that using this technique means that many diseases are ignored by the study which may not benefit from nurse education at this level, but it seems suggestible from the research that it is. Primm (1987) compared the competency of AND prepared nurses to BSN prepared nurses. BSN qualifications take roughly twice the amount of time as an AND qualification. Although both lead to RN status, Primm found evidence to suggest that BSN prepared nurses had a higher competence rating in the majority of the five areas surveyed in the study. This gives further evidence that bachelor preparation may lead to better prepared nurses, although the evidence from one study should be carefully used when generalising as many programs can be different between areas. White, Coyne & Patel (2001) investigated all members of the Oncology Nursing Society to ascertain whether nurses felt adequately prepared for end-of-life care. All the respondents said that end-of-life care was an important aspect of their work life, and each of them had covered this area in their bachelor preparation. One aspect that came up is that nurses felt that continuing education was very important, although only two respondents had covered end-of-life care in the previous two years. This suggests that, whilst bachelor prepared nurses are important and feel qualified, there could be more education provided for nurses during their career. It must be noted that the nurses here were only questioned on their participation in end-of-life care so we must be careful not to generalize these views without careful consideration. Further evidence that bachelor prepared nurses are useful in specialized situations is provided by Kardong-Edgren & Campinha-Bacote (2008). This paper examined four groups of nurses, each from different geographical areas, and surveyed the cultural sensitivity of those with an American BSN qualification. The study found that, because cultural sensitivity and awareness of beliefs is an important aspect of gaining the BSN qualification, nurses with the qualification were more highly prepared to deal with various groups of patients. This is important as it shows that nurses with bachelor preparation may be more able to create a comfortable environment for the patient which will lead to lower in-hospital death rates and a more pleasant experience for the patient. It is important to note that this is an important aspect of nursing that can be overlooked by the literature. Thornton (1997) explored how important the sciences were in the preparation of nurses. Both students and staff were surveyed to ascertain whether the supporting biological and psychological knowledge were useful in creating qualified nurses, and the answer was significantly yes. This suggests that having a well-rounded education can give highly prepared nurses, which again further cements the importance of having bachelor prepared nurses, as those without this qualification will not have the same level of knowledge that they can apply in their career. Manias & Bullock (2002) examined a similar topic, but looked at the use of pharmacological knowledge in bachelor prepared nurses. Again, there was significant evidence that knowledge in pharmacology helped to produce better and more able nurses. Nurses without bachelor preparation would not have the same level of academic knowledge on the topic as bachelor prepared nurses, which may prove to be a detriment to their working ability. Chapple, Allcock & Wharrad (1993) asked the nurses themselves who had studied the sciences alongside medical students. Although all the students found the information provided in their education to be important for their career (further evidence that bachelor preparation in this way is useful), many felt that learning in the same classroom as medical students was detrimental. This suggests that nurses may need to be provided scientific information in a different format from others in the healthcare professions, and should be provided academic information in a very specific way. This suggests that there may need to be improvements made to the system to provide bachelor prepared nurses with the best experience in their education. Not only do many show improvements in statistics for bachelor prepared nurses, but chief nursing officers show a strong preference for bachelor prepared nurses. Goode et al (2001) surveyed chief nursing officers throughout the United States to ascertain their hiring principles when it came to BSN and non-BSN nurses, and there was a significantly higher likelihood that a nurse would get hired with a BSN preparation. This is not necessarily proof that bachelor preparation is necessary for nurses, but it does suggest that chief nursing officers have a good experience with these qualified nurses and thus there will be supporting reasons for this, perhaps those shown earlier in the essay. Lillibridge & Fox (2005) surveyed nurses who were in the position of not being bachelor prepared who were in the process of gaining qualifications on a part-time basis. There was no strong consensus in this paper, although the registered nurses (RNs) surveyed all found some benefit it going back to education. This is an interesting study as all the nurses surveyed had experienced working life both with and without a bachelor preparation. Many of the nurses surveyed found that they were being taught things that they had learned experientially, which suggests there may be a role for nurses that are not bachelor prepared, despite the experiences of the chief nursing officers in Goode et al (2001). A major area of controversy on the topic lays in the accelerated schemes for individuals who have completed an undergraduate degree in a different subject and then wish to continue onto nursing. Newschwander (1988) compared 361 graduates, all of whom had a bachelor qualification. Half of these had completed an accelerated program leading to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and the others had completed the standard baccalaureate. This study was interesting in that no significant differences were found between the groups, which suggests that both ways lead to competent nurses. It suggests that a Bachelor of Science in Nursing qualification is not necessary to produce a good nurse, which could have implications for nurses with different qualifications and may leave room for nurses with less academic qualifications. Raines & Sipes (2007) also studied these Bachelor of Science in Nursing graduates, one year after they had completed their second-degree. The nurses surveyed here all felt that they had gained sufficient preparation for their career using this method, which backs up the evidence provided by Newschwander (1998). These nurses were not only considered sufficiently qualified by their superiors but also felt happy with their progress themselves, which again suggests that this method is effective in training. It suggests that one does not have to be only prepared in nursing to be a good nurse, and that accelerated programs work equally well, suggesting that other shorter routes could be considered, aside from standard bachelor preparation. Michel & Sneed (1995) covered another important area which is controversial; the use of research findings by nurses. Many consider writing papers and looking at research to be covered in too much detail for a degree leading to a vocational career, but Michel & Sneed (1995) found that nurses did use this ability in their career, and those without bachelor preparation would not have this ability. The use of this in the nursing profession evidently has a strong effect on the nurses ability to provide healthcare, and this is further evidence that bachelor preparation is useful. Carroll et al (1997) also examined the use of research by these nurses. The study was mainly aimed at finding how important nursing research was in the profession, and found that it was useful in many areas. Again, nurses without bachelor preparation are likely to be worse at completing academic research because they do not have training in the area. If nursing research is an important aspect of being a nurse (which many consider it to be), then this is heavy evidence that bachelor prepared nurses are definitely superior in at least this area of their job, and suggests why nursing managers may show a preference for these individuals in employment. What is perhaps interesting is that Whyte, Lugton & Fawcett (2000) examined those with Masters level preparation. This was found to be useful to nurses but only those in very specific areas, and suggests that bachelor level preparation may be adequate for the great majority of nursing professionals. Although it does not directly bolster the argument, it is interesting to consider that over-education of nurses may not provide any additional benefit and therefore this should be taken into account when determining the preparation level necessary for nursing graduates. In conclusion, there is a great amount of evidence in the literature that suggests that bachelor prepared nurses are superior in their career to others without the same level of qualification. Not only do they have background scientific knowledge in a wide range of areas, such as pharmacology and biology, they can also use the skills gained in research for their careers. The nurses with bachelor preparation were also found to be more culturally sensitive, which is an important aspect of nursing care, particularly in diverse communities. The results from many of these papers found that both the bachelor prepared nurses and the nursing officers felt the bachelor preparation to be positive in creating good nurses. It is also interesting that many nurses do not need further qualification (e.g. Masters) which suggests that over-education may be unnecessary. From this it is evident that there are a great number of things to be considered, but bachelor prepared nurses do provide great care for their communities. References Aiken, L. H., Clarke, S. P., Cheung, R. B., Sloane, D. M., & Silber, J. H. (2003). Educational Levels of Hospital Nurses and Surgical Patient Mortality. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 290(12), 1617 -1623. doi:10.1001/jama.290.12.1617 Carroll, D. L., Greenwood, R., Lynch, K. E., Sullivan, J. K., Ready, C. H., & Fitzmaurice, J. B. (1997). Barriers and facilitators to the utilization of nursing research. Clinical Nurse Specialist, 11(5), 207. Chapple, M., Allcock, N., & Wharrad, H. J. (1993). Bachelor of nursing students’ experiences of learning biological sciences alongside medical students. Nurse education today, 13(6), 426–434. Goode, C. J., Pinkerton, S. E., McCausland, M. P., Southard, P., Graham, R., & Krsek, C. (2001). Documenting chief nursing officers’ preference for BSN-prepared nurses. Journal of Nursing Administration, 31(2), 55. Kardong-Edgren, S., & Campinha-Bacote, J. (2008). Cultural competency of graduating US Bachelor of Science nursing students. Contemporary nurse: a journal for the Australian nursing profession, 28(1-2), 37 Lillibridge, J., & Fox, S. D. (2005). RN to BSN education: what do RNs think? Nurse educator, 30(1), 12. Manias, E., & Bullock, S. (2002). The educational preparation of undergraduate nursing students in pharmacology: perceptions and experiences of lecturers and students. International journal of nursing studies, 39(7), 757–769. Michel, Y., & Sneed, N. V. (1995). Dissemination and use of research findings in nursing practice. Journal of Professional Nursing, 11(5), 306–311. Newschwander, G. E. (1988a). The accelerated option for non-nurse college graduates leading to the bachelor of science in nursing degree: An analysis of graduates’ preparation and performance. Primm, P. L. (1987). Differentiated practice for ADN-and BSN-prepared nurses***. Journal of Professional Nursing, 3(4), 218–225. Raines, D. A., & Sipes, A. (2007). One year later: reflections and work activities of accelerated second-degree bachelor of science in nursing graduates. Journal of Professional Nursing, 23(6), 329–334. Sasichay-Akkadechanunt, T., Scalzi, C. C., & Jawad, A. F. (2003). The relationship between nurse staffing and patient outcomes. Journal of Nursing Administration, 33(9), 478. Thornton, T. (1997). Attitudes towards the relevance of biological, behavioural and social sciences in nursing education. Journal of advanced nursing, 26(1), 180–186. White, K. R., Coyne, P. J., & Patel, U. B. (2001). Are Nurses Adequately Prepared for End?of?Life Care? Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 33(2), 147-151. doi:10.1111/j.1547-5069.2001.00147.x Whyte, D. A., Lugton, J., & Fawcett, T. N. (2000). Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing. A 10-year follow-up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 31(5), 1072–1080. Read More