Since the IOM report led to nursing students being encouraged to get their bachelors degree rather than stopping with an associates degree. This is because those healthcare organizations who have more nurses with their BSN than those with their ADN had fewer medical errors, lower mortality rates, and generally better patient outcomes. The IOM report (2011) talks about the challenges that nurses face in the twenty-first century, which differ from those of the twentieth century. The report says, “There is a shortage of faculty to teach nurses . . . . Many nursing schools have dealt with the explosion of research and knowledge needed to provide health care in an increasingly complex system by adding layers of content that requires more instruction” (IOM, 2011). After the report, and as part of the ACA (2010), the capacity of nursing schools in the United States was increased. More nurses are encouraged to get their BSNs including those with ADNs.
The obvious reason for nurses to engage in professional development throughout their careers is so they learn the new innovations in healthcare that are constantly being added to the body of knowledge. Another reason is that globalization has made it easier to live and work as a nurse anywhere in the world. Sources of cultural knowledge are important for nurses to develop and continuing education can provide that. However, there are other reasons as well. Price and Reichert (2017) of Administrative Sciences say nurses have “an understanding that best practices and patient care standards were constantly evolving, and there was a desire for access to information through training and education to provide the best care possible to patients. Nurses at this stage described continuing education as an investment in their expertise that would improve the care they were able to provide to their patients” (Price & Reichert, 2017, p. 8). The words “professional development” encapsulate the benefit of continuing education for nurses—they develop their professional capabilities by engaging in continuing education.
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