In 2011, the Institute of Medicine released a report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, which outlined how nursing roles, education, and responsibilities needed to change in order to meet the complex needs of patients and address the ever-evolving world of healthcare. They challenged healthcare organizations to create structures to support three major recommendations:
- Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training
- Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression
- Nurses should be full partners, with physicians and other health professionals, in redesigning health care in the United States
The American Nurses Credentialing Center states that Magnet-designated organizations use multiple strategies to create structures and processes that support a lifelong learning culture that includes professional collaboration and the promotion of role development academic achievement, and career advancement.
Did you know that UAMS supports you to achieve higher levels of education with tuition discounts and pay differentials for a baccalaureate degree? UAMS offers the Tuition Discount Program to all full-time, active employees and their spouses and children. As a full-time nurse, you can receive 50% tuition discount at any UA academic institution. The University of Arkansas Little Rock (UALR) is the closest UA campus that offers an RN-BSN program in both 12-month and 18-month tracks that are completely online. The BSN courses cover the areas of health assessment, wellness promotion, economics, research, legalities, leadership, and advocacy. There are 3 admission opportunities, fall, spring, and summer, each year. Learn more about the program by visiting https://ualr.edu/nursing/rn-to-bsn/
Once you have completed your BSN, you are eligible to receive a pay increase! A BSN also offers you a lifetime of greater earning potential and opportunities that would not otherwise be available to you. As a baccalaureate-prepared nurse, you can grow in your profession and have opportunities to be a clinical educator, a clinical specialist, a manager and a clinical instructor for nursing students, among other roles. If you want to stay in clinical nursing at the bedside, as a BSN-prepared nurse, you have the opportunity to transition to the top of the RN Clinical Ladder to an RN IV in the clinical expert or management tracks. These roles are informal unit leadership roles involved in specialty education, training, quality improvement, evidence-based practice, and practice changes.
As we gear up for the ‘Back to School’ season, consider enrolling in a program to advance your degree. For more information on continuing your education and other professional development opportunities, visit nurses.uams.edu!
