Similar legislation was first introduced in the state in 2005. That proposal would have required all new nurses to attain a bachelor’s degree within 10 years of receiving a nursing license. The state legislature never voted on the proposed bill, but patient safety and nursing advocates are reviving those efforts.
On a national level, most nurses have at least an associate’s degree, but less than half of registered nurses have bachelor’s degrees. The Institute of Medicine released a report last year, outlining a goal to have 80 percent of all nurses with bachelor’s degrees by 2020. The recent push for higher nursing education stems from a growing body of medical research that shows higher education among nurses can improve patient safety and outcomes.
As proponents for the proposed legislation gear up to lobby lawmakers, New York healthcare providers are implementing a pilot program designed to execute the Institute of Medicine’s recommendations in the previously mentioned report.
Related Articles on Patient Safety:
Regulators Begin Unannounced Inspection of Atlanta’s Grady Memorial Hospital
3 Johns Hopkins Researchers Elected Into Institutes of Health
Nurses Express Patient Safety Concerns Outside HCA’s Largo Medical Center
