5622149 “CASE STUDY 10-1 Economic Value of BSN Education for RNs”
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Nov 24, 2024
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Week 7 Case Study: Economic Value of BSN Education for R.N.s
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Week 7 Case Study: Economic Value of BSN Education for R.N.s
Question 1
My interpretation of the study by Linda Aiken and her Ph.D. colleagues is that the
level of education among nurses is closely linked with patient outcomes. Their study
indicated that every 10% increase in bachelor's degree nurses is associated with a 7%
decrease in the likelihood of inpatient mortality within the first month of admission and that
increasing a nurse's workload by one patient increases the likelihood of inpatient mortality
within 30 days of admission by 7%. This means the hospital should focus on the optimal
nurse-patient ratio when making staffing decisions as they greatly impact patient outcomes
and even influence mortality in the first 30 days of admission (Milstead & Short, 2022). An
implication of this study on the hospital leaders when making staffing decisions is that they
prioritize nurses' education level when hiring employees. Following the study, it's evident that
if the hospital leaders need to upsurge the proportion of BSN-prepared nurses among their
employees, they have to provide incentives for the nurses that have pursued higher education,
they have to continue investing in continuing education programs for their employees, and
they have to partner with nursing schools to improve the number of students pursuing BSN.
Question 2
Moreover,
coming from Illinois, a report released by the Illinois Nurses' Grassroot
Coalition revealed that Illinois requires more registered professional nurses (RNs) for the
growing number of individuals needing nursing care for acute and chronic health care
problems. The report revealed that Illinois has 205,000 RNs licensed by the state of Illinois
through the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IFDPR) (Illinois
Board of Higher Education & Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation,
2020). Nevertheless, the number of BSN-prepared nurses in every healthcare facility or
hospital differs widely. For instance, the Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago has
over 82% of registered nurses with a BSN degree. For instance, their Radiation Oncology
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Mohamed Abazeed, MD, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at Feinberg School of Medicine. In
addition, the hospital has numerous BSN degree holders hence the reason for their high
patient outcomes (Northwestern Medicine, n.d.). Moreover, other factors associated with
improved patient outcomes include; leadership, staffing ratios, and organizational culture.
Question 3.
Studies reveal that finding RN-patient and BSN RN-patient ratios in hospitals is not
easy for an individual but can be easy if the hospital conducts them. The hospital can set up a
team to report staffing data to the regulatory agencies, but this information is not always
shared with the public. In addition, individuals find it challenging to find out about the RN-
patient and BSN RN-patient ratios in hospitals because, in most cases, hospitals fail to
disclose their staffing data information as they fear possible legal liabilities and competition
from other hospitals (Milstead & Short, 2022). The other thing is that it can be challenging to
quantify staffing ratios, making it difficult to release information that people easily interpret.
The lack of information on staffing ratios means that people are unaware of the risks
connected with the care they get in the hospital and how it is associated with staffing (
Sharma
& Rani, 2020). Some issues can arise due to inadequate staffing, but the public will not know
this. The body that can address and change this situation is the policymakers and regulatory
agencies to implement guidelines that enhance transparency around staffing ratios.
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References
Illinois Board of Higher Education & Illinois Department of Financial and Professional
Regulation. (2020). State of Nursing Education in Illinois: Full Report. Retrieved
from
https://www.il-nurses.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/STATE-OF-NURSING-
EDUCATION-IN-ILLINOIS-FULL-REPORT-V3.pdf
Northwestern Medicine. (n.d.).
Doctor Search Results | Northwestern Medicine
.
https://www.nm.org/doctors/search-results?sort=distance&page=1&pagesize=24
Milstead, J. A., & Short, N. M. (2022). Health Policy and Politics: A Nurse's Guide. Jones &
Bartlett Learning.
Sharma, S. K., & Rani, R. (2020). Nurse-to-patient ratio and nurse staffing norms for
hospitals in India: A critical analysis of national benchmarks.
Journal of family
medicine and primary care
,
9
(6), 2631–2637.
https://doi.org/10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_248_20