Over the last couple of years, health care has been changing its focus. There is more need for expertise to observe community health and handle chronic illnesses than treating episodic and exceptional cases (Battié, 2013). Care settings are moving outside of health centers and into communities, and thus, the current health care system is not ready to meet the changing demands (Battié, 2013). Within this dynamic environment, current approaches to nursing education seem to be ineffectual. To address all these issues, the Institute of Medicine published the Future of Nursing report with recommendations posing vital objectives to accomplish. Half of the recommendations relate to how nurses get an education. Raised expectations on the obtained degree of nurses will increase employer competition for baccalaureate and doctorate-level workers but may take away possibilities from associate-degree applicants.
Nurses holding Bachelor of Science (BSN) diplomas may experience an increased demand for their skills. With IOM’s recommendation to increase the number BSN-level nurses, many health care organizations are reconsidering their requirements for entry-level positions. An increasing number of institutions now are expecting at least a BSN degree for junior positions (Battié, 2013). This drift will negatively impact those with associate degrees in nursing (ADN), but the job market for BSN-degree nurses will increase. Air Force, the U.S. Army, Navy, and other branches of U.S. Armed Forces all require a BSN degree from their registered nurses if the latter want a promotion. These tendencies make the preponderance of health care institutions, including state organizations, a potential place of work for BSN-level nurses.
By intending life-long learning for nurses, IOM recognizes that skill demands in health care will continuously evolve and change. To stay competitive in the job market, nurses must commit to continuing education programs (CEPs) or pursuing an advanced degree. Master’s and doctoral degrees will provide additional opportunities like becoming a faculty member and getting a chance to contribute to the future of nursing education, or a more challenging and high-paying position (Battié, 2013). Nurses with doctoral-level knowledge will prepare the next generation of nurses and guide research for advancing nursing science as the foundation for practical improvements (Battié, 2013). A plethora of programs, both free and cheap, exist to enrich oneself with further education. CEPs and postgraduate degrees provide opportunities for demonstrating clinical excellence to better compete in the job market and to make contributions to the nursing society.
Increasing the level of education, apart from providing more opportunities, will bring additional responsibilities to nurses. They will not only have to take part in treatment but also participate in developing new policies and recommendations to shape the nursing industry for future demands. The role of a nurse will become instantly more critical in terms of required input because of the dynamics of the health care system’s needs.
Nursing education will experience a significant shift in the next years. The Future of Nursing catalyzes many activities and trends and proposes meaningful changes in nursing and the health care system (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2016). It could be inferred that IOM sees enhancements in nursing education as the basis for positive developments in the health of the country, prevention of illnesses, and research. For this reason, every nurse should commit himself or herself to correspondingly reacting to IOM’s recommendations. It would not only be beneficial for the overall community and society but also would present nurses with additional opportunities.
References
Battié, R. N. (2013). Perioperative nursing and education: What the IOM Future of Nursing report tells us. AORN Journal, 98(3), 249-259.
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2016). Assessing progress on the Institute of Medicine report The Future of Nursing. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.