New Brief Makes the Case for Baccalaureate-Prepped Nurses

A new policy brief authored by Ann Kutney-Lee and Linda Aiken and distributed by the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania makes the case for baccalaureate-prepared nurses.

Researchers found that increases in the percentage of nurses with baccalaureate degrees were associated with significant reductions in surgical mortality rates and failure-to-rescue rates.  They also found that a ten-point increase in a hospital’s percentage of baccalaureate-prepared nurses was associated with an average reduction of 2.12 deaths for every 1,000 patients. (The average reduction was 7.47 deaths per 1,000 patients in the subset of patients with complications.)

These results suggest that if all the hospitals in the study had increased their percentage of baccalaureate nurses by ten points, about 500 deaths might have been prevented.  This is an incredibly important finding, given the recommendation made in the Institute of Medicine report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health to increase the number of nurses holding a baccalaureate degree to 80% by the year 2020.

The brief also explains that in addition to improving patient outcomes, higher numbers of baccalaureate-prepared nurses could also lead to an increased number of graduate-level nurses prepared to either become nurse faculty or accept advanced-practice positions in primary care.  Aiken found that nurses with initial associate's degrees were less likely than those with an initial baccalaureate degree to earn a master's degree.

This brief is based on the following articles: 

1. A. Kutney-Lee, D.M. Sloane, L.H. Aiken. An increase in the number of nurses with baccalaureate degrees is linked to lower rates of post-surgery mortality, Health Affairs, March 2013, vol. 32, pp. 579-586;
2. L.H. Aiken. Nurses for the future. New England Journal of Medicine, January 20, 2011, vol. 364, pp. 196-198.

INQRI Grantees' Article Supports Future of Nursing Recommendation

INQRI grantees Mary Blegen and Tom Vaughn and their team recently published a new article, "Baccalaureate education in nursing and patient outcomes" which examined the effects of registered nurse (RN) education by determining whether nurse-sensitive patient outcomes were better in hospitals with a higher proportion of RNs with baccalaureate degrees.

The Institute of Medicine's report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health recommends increasing the percentage of RNs with baccalaureate degrees from 50% to 80% by 2020. Research has linked RN education levels to hospital mortality rates but not with other nurse-sensitive outcomes.

This was a cross-sectional study that, with the use of data from 21 University HealthSystem Consortium hospitals, analyzed the association between RN education and patient outcomes (risk-adjusted patient safety and quality of care indicators), controlling for nurse staffing and hospital characteristics. Hospitals with a higher percentage of RNs with baccalaureate or higher degrees had lower congestive heart failure mortality, decubitus ulcers, failure to rescue, and postoperative deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism and shorter length of stay.

The recommendation of the Future of Nursing report to increase RN education levels is supported by these findings.

Click here to access the article via PubMed.

Virginia Nursing Program Allows Students to Obtain BSN for Under $17,000

A recent partnership between the Virginia Community College System and Western Governors University will allow for nursing students to obtain a BSN for less than $17,000. With the Affordable Care Act expanding coverage and the nursing workforce continuing to age, this step will be important in filling the gap of qualified nurses to provide care to the United States' population.

To read more about this partnership, click here.

Significant Rise in Ohio Nurses Seeking 4-year Degrees

In response to growing demands by hospital systems and ambulatory practices, more Ohio registered nurses are enrolling in bachelors of science programs to enhance their skill-set and improve their desirability in the touch job market. Many of these nurses are seeking to obtain their BSN as part of their job requirements, which require nurses without a bachelors degree to obtain one within five years of employment. These efforts support one of the recommendations made by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, "The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health" which seeks to improve the number of registered nurses with BSNs to 80% by 2020.

To read more about Ohio's efforts to improve its nursing workforce, click here.

To read more blogposts relating to the IOM's "Future of Nursing" report, click here.

Proposed Bill Would Allow Michigan's Community Colleges to Offer 4-Year Nursing Degrees

A bill currently being considered by Michigan's Senate Education Committee would allow community colleges to offer 4-year degrees in nursing and other fields. David Jesse, of the Detroit Free Press, reported that the bill has already been passed by Michigan's House of Representatives and is now being reviewed by the state Senate. Proponents of the bill argue that the legislation would reduce the cost of 4-year nursing degrees while closing the projected 18,000 nurse shortage slated for 2015. This proposed bill aligns with recommendations made in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to read other blogposts relating to the IOM's report

New York State Initiative to Educate The Nursing Workforce: "BSN in 10"

A few weeks ago, we reported on the proposed legislation in the New York State Senate that would require Registered Nurses to obtain a BSN within 10 years of initial employment. Following up on this post, we are sharing another article with you that discussed the significance and challenges associated with this legislation. Christine Loman, of the The Evening Tribune, discussed the importance of nurses with associates degrees obtaining their BSNs and how this will be beneficial to not only the nurses themselves, but the patients they care for. This proposed legislation addresses the fourth recommendation in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report that proposed an increase in the proportion of nurses with a baccalaureate degree to 80 percent by 2020.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read the blogpost from a couple weeks ago also addressing the "BSN in 10" initiative.

New York Bill Would Require Four Year Registered Nursing Degrees

We hope that everyone had a safe and happy holiday season!

Last week, The Washington Post reported on a new bill being considered by the New York State Senate that will require all registerd nurses to obtain bachelor’s degrees within 10 years in order to keep working in the state. This intiative, “BSN in 10”, is supported by major nursing and health policy organizations across the country. The proposed legislation also directly addresses recommendation #4 made in the IOM's Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read all blogposts relating to the IOM's report.