To BSN or not to BSN – That is the

To BSN or not to BSN – That is the nurse’s question!

The Goldmark Report in 1923 was the first to recommend that the entry level of education for professional practice as a registered nurse should be a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN), and heated debate has raged among nurses over the issue ever since.

Diploma and Associate Degree RNs will clearly tell you that they can run rings around BSN program graduates when it comes to patient care. Theyll explain that they have more actual clinical experience and patient care know how in their little finger than a new BSN grad, and 99% of the time theyre right about that! Ill be the first to admit that if I get seriously ill Im hoping that my nurse graduated from a diploma program like the one they used to offer at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. Those nurses had so much training and hands on care experience by the time they graduated that few physicians could hold a candle to them on their best day.

This isnt about whether BSN nurses are better than ADN or Diploma nurses

Up until a few years ago I would have been just as emotional as the next nurse in arguing against the...