The IOM published report, “Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health,”
makes recommendations for lifelong learning and achieving higher levels of education.
In 1,000-1,250 words, examine the importance of nursing education and discuss your
overall educational goals.
Include the following:
1.) Discuss your options in the job market based on your educational level.
2.) Review the IOM Future of Nursing Recommendations for achieving higher levels of
education. Describe what professional certification and advanced degrees (MSN, DNP, etc.)
you want to pursue and explain your reasons for wanting to attain the education. Discuss
your timeline for accomplishing these goals.
3.) Discuss how increasing your level of education would affect how your competitiveness in
the current job market and your role in the future of nursing.
4.) Discuss the relationship of continuing nursing education to competency, attitudes,
knowledge, and the ANA Scope and Standards for Practice and Code of Ethics.
5.) Discuss whether continuing nursing education should be mandatory. Provide support
for your response.
You are required to cite to a minimum of three sources to complete this assignment.
Sources must be published within the last 5 years and appropriate for the assignment
criteria and relevant to nursing practice.
Advanced Education in Nursing
No more than ever, the healthcare environment requires more educated nurses due to the
growing complexity in administering the care. The trend can be well exemplified by the state in
America where healthcare is now at crossroads. It is expected that patient will have more
complicated needs and as such emphasis needs to be put on the important of nursing education
and how its continuation can help in improving the health status of the nation. According to a
report presented in 2010 by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), nurses were in the frontline and
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have the most impact when it comes to patient care in the USA (Finkelman, 2009). That said, it
is only befitting that nursing enthusiasts attain higher levels o education to serve the public even
better. With advanced studies, the highly-educated nurses will be able to adapt with the ever-
changing needs in healthcare provision.
According to various studies, it is estimated that more than 20 percent of Americans will
be above the age of 65 by 2030. The increased longevity is as a result of new treatment and is
expected to get better going by the massive influx of patients in hospitals which necessitates
enormous need for educated nurses. Going with this trend, it is evident that BSNs are not only on
demand, but employer’s demand for such qualities is also on the rise. The introduction of the
Affordable Care Act played an important role in pushing for preventative care. That in mind, it is
clear why the highly educated nurses are expected to use their advanced knowledge in
preventative care to meet the needs of new patients who have now been granted access to
healthcare. Essentially, professions who wish to capitalize on the current need for educated
nurses will have to continue their education online through RNto MSN programs to gain
extensive knowledge.
Technology alongside extensive knowledge in healthcare policy, leadership, and research
are factors that nurses in the 21 st century need to familiarize themselves with to succeed in the
career. It is expected that our future nurses will be more knowledgeable and have good
understanding of evidence-based practices so that they can implement new methods and ideas for
better healthcare provision. Educated nurses will eventually understand how coordination and
collaboration works hand in hand across multiple disciplinary teams (Finkelman, 2009). From
the precedent, the future of healthcare is not at all gloom. In fact, going by the several enrolments
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to RN to MSN programs, the future of nursing is bright with participants indicating signs of great
and visionary leaders. In time, these nurses will manage complex problems and supervise the
impact of decisions on patients across the healthcare spectrum.
There are several reasons why enrolling to an RN to BSN program can benefit your
nursing career. One important as reason you should advance your knowledge in this field is that
it improves patient care. When you decide to advance your education in nursing, you acquire
extra knowledge and advanced techniques that are crucial when it comes to providing care to
your patients. The application of technology and data analysis techniques during classes will help
sharpen your skills and gain hands-on experience (Forbes, 2009). Assignment like capstone
projects will expose you to research techniques so that you are able to identify problems, search
literature and give recommendations on how you can improve your professional practice.
Besides, as you gradually grow your education, you will learn how to make better healthcare
decisions. This is important especially if you are looking to achieve efficiency by reducing cost,
optimizing operations, and achieving better patient outcomes. Overall, the goal of furthering
your nursing education is for you to acquire relevant knowledge and judgment that can be
applied in practice for positive outcomes.
Going forward, advancing your nursing education helps to expand your healthcare
knowledge regardless of the degree you have chosen. Popular programs include healthcare
information systems, healthcare research analysis, and healthcare innovation. After you have
graduated with the aforementioned honors, your career opportunities are increased not to add that
you also advanced your organization skills. An interesting aspect about nursing education is that
it enables you to become innovative. While in class you are able to learn various skills such as
ADVANCED EDUCATION IN NURSING 4
how to use an automated clinic appliance. You are also equipped to train and make the best
decisions possible in your place of work (Forbes, 2009). By constantly applying your skills you
are able to improve your own organization and assist others in achieving greater heights in the
profession.
You will realize that furthering your education in nursing not only benefits an individual
but the entire community as well. Advanced studies in nursing helps the prospective nurse to
acquire necessary knowledge and awareness to play an important role in the welfare of the
community. For instance, advanced knowledge through an MSN program can help to develop,
plan, evaluate, and implement health programs that are important in your area. This extremely
rewarding as you not only impact yourself but also those around you.
In conclusion, there are several ways through which can achieve a more educated
workforce in the healthcare industry. It is clear that an educated workforce will be able to hand
the increasing need for medical care across the world. Achieving this goal is a process that
requires dedication and drive to attain the baccalaureate degrees. Education models and
programs that support such trends include traditional 4-year BSN programs at colleges and
universities, RN to MSN programs, educational collaborators that allow smooth transition from
AND to BSN, proprietary institutions, academic-service partnerships, and simulation through
online learning (Institute of Medicine (US), 2011). In addition to increasing the number of
educated nurses, schools should put more effort in preparing nurses to become more competent
at the graduate level so that their transitioning can be easy. Graduate level schools should strive
to offer advanced education in leadership, training, practice, and research. Despite the fact that
13 percent of nurses have graduated with degrees, less than one percent hold a doctoral degree.
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That said, we need more doctorate teachers today so that they can teach future generations of
nurses. By this, we will gradually make improvements in nursing and practice.
References
Finkelman, Anita Ward, and Carole Kenner. (2009) Teaching IOM: Implications of the Institute
of Medicine reports for nursing education. Nursesbooks. org.
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Forbes, Maryann O., and Mary T. Hickey. (2009). “Curriculum reform in baccalaureate nursing
education: Review of the literature.” International journal of nursing education scholarship
6.1.
Institute of Medicine (US). (2011) Committee on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Initiative on the Future of Nursing. The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health.
Washington, DC: National Academies Press.