Hospitals should not wait for the government mandate. They should analyze their nursing workforce and develop strategies to increase the number of BSN prepared nurses. Decisions should be made whether to retain and require all of them to have BSN or hire more BSN nurses. Since obtaining a BSN causes financial burden, financial incentive is a feasible strategy to encourage them to advance their nursing education. Financial incentives may include tuition reimbursement, salary differential and professional advancement programs.
A project was made to elicit the opinions of members of AORN of Central Ohio regarding Ohio's BSN-in-10 initiative. Participants valued higher education, but were not informed about the need for more BSN-prepared nurses. They also were not aware of the professional and financial effects of obtaining a baccalaureate degree, the available resources to assist them in obtaining one, or collaborative nursing association partnerships that advocate for BSN-in-10 legislation. The results suggest that health care
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Selection of expert nurses who have the desire to teach during clinical placement will better prepare student nurses. Utilization of innovative strategies in clinical nursing education may overcome faculty nursing shortage. In addition, Dedicated Education Units (DEU) may enhance student learning and improve clinical experience. DEUs offer benefits for the nursing schools, the hospitals, the faculty, and the students. Because the hospital employs the clinical instructors, the nursing school can increase its enrollment without increasing costs. The hospital benefits by training students it can hire after their graduation and licensure. Students benefit by having consistent clinical instructors each day, something not guaranteed under the traditional preceptorship model. The benefits of DEUs extend beyond the academic environment to the practice setting as well (Future of Nursing,