Educational Preparation
Grand Canyon University
Professional Dynamics
NRS-430V
November 22, 2014
Educational Preparation The Nursing profession in the health care field is constantly evolving in every direction. Since the beginning, nursing has developed and expanded its principles in many different directions regarding education. In order to become a registered nurse one must graduate with an associates or bachelor’s degree in nursing. In this writing piece, I will be discussing the differences between Associate degree and Bachelor’s degree level in the wonderful field of nursing. Education is a life-long process for a nurse; either at the bedside or school. With the ever so growing technology and demand for excellent care, nurses continue to advance their knowledge and experience in order to meet the proficiencies of specialized training. The Associate degree level of nursing produced in response to a nursing shortage which occurred before and after World War II, continues to this day. The idea was brilliant; it was also a short term resolution to the shortage and was not designed to substitute professional levels of education in the field of nursing. Numerous hospitals have specified their desire for hospital nursing staff to be educated at the baccalaureate-degree level and become of Magnet Status. According to the article, the future of Baccalaureate Degrees for Nurses, “Many hospitals are seeking magnet status, which places high emphasis on baccalaureate or advanced education of nurses while offering incentives or tuition reimbursement to assist in educational endeavors” (Lane & Kohlenberg, 2010). Their certainly is a notable difference that should be distinguished between a nurse prepared from the associate degree level compared to the baccalaureate degree level in nursing. A nurse with baccalaureate degree has the higher esteemed form of education and training on the principles of health care. It provides a nurse with a deeper understanding and knowledge of the field overall compared to a nurse with an associate’s degree. Simply put, the longer one has studied and trained to be successful in nursing the more engaged one will be in the many ever changing processes that go along with the practice. The longevity and expectations on nursing has undeniably intensified, with that in mind, this change has made nurses ever more committed to becoming continually refined in higher capacities regarding their dedication to their craft. There are several studies that link the shared characteristics of hospitals with a high percentage of baccalaureate-degree level with lower mortality. “One rational for the push for BSN nurses is because recent studies have indicated that there is decreased morbidity, mortality, and failure-to rescue rates in hospitals that employ larger percentages of baccalaureate prepared nurses” (Altmann, 2011). A nurse graduate with a baccalaureate level degree is ready for multiple aspects of health care along with ongoing knowledge of the medical system and various methods of application. There are some who believe that nurses whom were educated at the baccalaureate level have stronger critical thinking, greater communication skills, and last but not least are more skilled in their capability to form nursing diagnoses,