Is Nursing for Everyone who wants to be a nurse?

I spoke on Monday at the Southwestern Ohio Nurses Association (SONA) annual meeting. I presented on Ohio Nursing law and rules; it was a one hour CE program offered by my consulting firm.

I had a ball! I had a chance to see old friends and colleagues at the Meeting.

This was a very interactive audience with excellent comments and questions about nursing licensure, criminal convictions, and student nurses.

I posed the question of whether we as a profession as socializing new nurses in the professional nursing practice. Comments varied.

There were lots of questions and comments about nursing students and criminal convictions and why are we seeing so many nursing students with criminal convictions.

I even had someone approach me after this meeting who works as a RN with incarcerated women. She mentioned that alot of these women (who are currently incarcerated in a women's penitentiary) were former nursing students or worked in the healthcare field and want to pursue a nursing education upon release. She wanted to know if these women (not individual cases but the women as a whole) had a chance for nursing licensure because of their criminal convictions and prison terms.

I was at a professional association meeting a few months ago and someone mentioned that a good percentage of the nursing students of today were the Taco Bell and McDonald workers ten and fifteen years ago and this is the reason why there has been a shift i the "mind set" of nursing students and more nursing students with criminal convictions.

A comment was made at this meeting that nursing schools shouldn't take a nursing students money if the school knows this individual will not be able to obtain a nursing license or will obtain a license with restrictions that will impact employability and career satisfaction. Wow!!

Don't flame me, this is just my two cents and a few observations:

1. Nursing is a female dominated profession and this attracts women of course.

2. Nursing has multiple entry levels to practice and this is very appealing especially in these tight economic times.

3. Nursing is seen as end to a means or a means to an end depending on who you are and where you are because of the multiple entries (LPN (one year), RN (two year), RN (four year), RN accelerated if you have a Bachelor's degree in another field, etc.)

4. Criminal convictions and criminal issue happen; there are lots of folks with criminal convictions. 

5. Individuals with criminal convictions like everyone else seek professional training and employment and healthcare and especially nursing is seen as a very viable option.

6. Nursing is considered one of the most trusted professions.

7. A career in nursing is not a right or entitlement. Nursing is not for everyone. Individuals with criminal convictions need to do some research and speak with a licensure defense attorney before applying to a nursing school to make informed decisions. A licensure defense attorney won't embellish your "chances of licensure" unlike some others.

8. State Nursing Boards, Nursing Schools/College, and Nursing Clinical Sites will continue to look into criminal convictions unless parameters and boundaries are imposed by the state or federal legislatures.

9. Proprietary nursing schools.

Comments

[latonia]

Thank you for your comments. There has to be a checks and balance system when a nurse or nursing student has a criminal history.

There is a different mindset with nursing students and nurses today. I am not saying this is "bad" however it creates issues for the profession that should be assessed and addressed.

I don't think as a profession that we are socializing nurses in the professional practice of nursing. There is a rush to graduate, pass NCLEX, and practice and make money. That's fine, but what about the ethical, moral, legal, and professional practice implications of being a nurse.

I think this is what is missing in the practice of nursing today.

[joan e]

This is a complex issue, and is definitely more visible today than in the 70's when there were nursing schools literally hand picked who they wanted and met their specifications.

the observation that today's nurses are not unlike the 1980's fast food workers.
The quality of todays nurses is not the same, and this is apparent in their work,interactions with pts, families, doctors, ancillary staff, and nurse colleagues.

I am unsettled when a nurse fails to recognize that there exists a range of bahaviots and methods when caring for patients and they act the same with all. it is not ok to ask me if I have to 'pee" or to call me "honey", or to turn on my TV to divorce court and without ever asking..
caliber sounds

Maybe I sound like a snob, but nurses are held to standards that include a certain level of education and specified behaviors. Another unwritten rule is having high morals, values, respect for humans, and even proper grammar.

I cringe when reading nursing forums at some of grammatical errors in the posts, and basic errors such as not knowing when to use 'know' and "no" and "there" and "their".

I am always amazed and also baffled when reading about people with criminal histories that are indignant and upset when they discover that their past is creating licensing issues.

it is very unclear why a school of nursing neglects to inform applicants with legal charges that there may be difficulty in being issued a license.

The increase of nurses with criminal pasts is , in part, because of BON's running checks and fingerprinting. I have no doubt that many people in nursing the lied about this when applying, and got away with it. Plus the data banks and NCSBN, the internet, and easier access to info factors in as well.

There is a need to ask about one's past,and I am all for this. I agree that there are some crimes that bar issuing a license to, and that addiction histories may need to require initial monitoring/ restrictions.

As with life in general, there are many situations that cannot be placed in a specific category, and need to be considered on a case by case basis.

Some states do better with this than others, and I think overall the states perform satisfactorily.

The handfull of states that do act in a more punitive way unfortunately are making a bad name for BON's in general.