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  • RN to B.S. in Nursing/
  • Why a B.S. in Nursing?
  • RN to B.S. in Nursing
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  • Why a B.S. in Nursing?
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WHY GET A B.S. IN NURSING?

Job security

In 2010, the Institute of Medicine (now the National Academy of Medicine) published a report that has been overwhelmingly referenced recommending that by the year 2020, 80 percent of nurses should be baccalaureate prepared. Since then, this has been used by healthcare agencies nationwide to set the bar, with many listing nursing positions as BSN preferred or having associate prepared nurses sign contracts requiring them to achieve that degree within 3-5 years or face termination.

This is especially seen in hospitals pursuing Magnet or Pathway to Excellence status. In 2017, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo also signed legislation requiring future nurses graduating from associate degree or diploma nursing programs to obtain a baccalaureate in nursing within 10 years of initial licensure.

  • Gov. Cuomo Signs Morelle and Flanagan Legislation

Quality of patient care

In 2011, the BSN recommendation was further supported by a study by Aiken, Cimiotti, Sloane, Smith, Flynn, and Neff, which concluded that a “10 percent increase in BSN-educated nurses decreases the odds on patients dying by about 4 percent.” (para. 5).

Then, in 2013, a study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that “…a 10 percent increase in the proportion of BSN-educated care was associated with a 10 percent reduction in the odds of mortality.” (p. 3).

The reasons for this are multifaceted, but ultimately, bachelor’s programs include more content on patient safety measures, patient satisfaction tactics, quality care skills, interdisciplinary practice, and leadership development.
  • Effects of Nurse Staffing and Nurse Education on Patient Deaths in Hospitals With Different Nurse Work Environments
  • Why Nurses Should Advance Their Education, and Strategies that Make this Feasible

Career mobility and pay

By achieving a Bachelor of Science in nursing, registered nurses are qualified candidates for many current and emerging roles within healthcare organizations. Additionally, baccalaureate prepared registered nurses are able to apply for graduate education to elevate their practice in roles such as nurse practitioners, nurse managers, nurse educators, and nurse midwives.

Additionally, payscale, Inc. found in a 2017 study that “BSNs with the same level of experience (as associate prepared nurses) earn $8,337 more” annually. 
  • BSN Degree vs RN Differences

Why a B.S. in nursing from St. Bonaventure?

True student-centered approach

The RN-to-B.S. in Nursing program is a hybrid program, offering students face-to-face and online/distance-education instruction. What's more, our program may even come to you, with instruction provided away from the St. Bonaventure campus, at a regional hospital or health facility, perhaps right where you work. (A minimum of 15 nurses is required for us to teach the program away from the SBU campus.)

Clinical hours are student-centered through one-on-one discussions and placement to not only meet clinical objectives, but personal ones as well.


Grow into a technology savvy consumer

With the hybrid approach, students are exposed to online courses, modules, and virtual simulation. Technology is the way of healthcare’s future, and it is found in many graduate school programs, so it is the mission of the nursing faculty at St. Bonaventure to prepare B.S. in nursing graduates to be savvy consumers for current practice and future academic endeavors.

Course content is also focused on technology, with two classes dedicated to developing skills in nursing informatics and evidence-based practice.


Emotional intelligence

A big piece that sets this program apart from others is a focus on emotional intelligence. Threaded throughout the program, self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management lessons and activities work to prepare RNs to become their best selves.

In 2017, a research study showed “…that training in emotional intelligence abilities may increase job satisfaction and decrease burnout.” (Jung Lee, p. 1)

Graduates are guided to complete assignments that hone inter- and intra-personal skills that can be immediately applied to combat driving factors behind nurse turnover. 

  • How emotional intelligence relates to job satisfaction and burnout in public service jobs 

     

I want to get a BSN. Why is this program called B.S. in Nursing?

Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs in the state of New York must use the term B.S. in Nursing rather than BSN, which is the accepted abbreviation in other states. The content, degree, and global acceptance is the same.

Upon graduation, nurses will be encouraged to sign their name with “,B.S., RN”, but may see BSN written on nametag placards commonly used in healthcare agencies, since they distinguish nationally recognized titles rather than individual state-used titles.
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