Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1500044
17 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP The case for advanced nursing degrees: As told by nurses themselves By Ashleigh Hollowell M ore nurses are needed at the bedside than ever before, yet the profession continues to suffer from shortages and turnover rates as high as 37 percent in some regions. And although pursuing ad- vanced nursing degrees may sometimes lead practice away from bedside roles and into others, Master of Science in nursing degrees are still worthy of pursuit, experts say. Nationally, only 15 percent of registered nurses in the U.S. hold a master's degree and 2.2 percent hold a doctoral degree, accord- ing to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. e low percentages are surpris- ing to some, including Lisa Rowen, DNSc, RN, the senior vice president and chief nurse executive for Baltimore-based University of Maryland Medical System. "I just assumed it would be way higher now. at caught me a little bit by surprise," she told Becker's. She said the numbers could be lower be- cause many nurses enter the profession with associate degrees and are then strongly en- couraged to obtain their bachelor's degree in the field. "It could be that they do that and they feel like they're finished. It could be that … they just want to stay at the bedside and work in a hospital setting." Of course, the profession would not work if everyone wanted to advance into roles away from the bedside, so it makes sense that there are some who desire to stay at it rather than pursue an MSN or higher degree, Dr. Rowen said. Nursing is also a profession in which those who do choose to go back to school oen do so later on in life, which can become compli- cated with possibly having children, working full time and managing other facets of per- sonal life, so fewer may tend to pursue it. "Whenever you have a profession that is predominantly women, pursuing higher education is always a difficult balancing act with family responsibilities and going back to school," Beth Brooks, PhD, RN, clinical advisor to Vivian Health, a healthcare hiring company, told Becker's. But just as more nurses are needed at the bedside, Anne Dabrow Woods, DNP, RN, chief nurse for Wolters Kluwer, a clinical information company, said the profession also needs more nurse educators who go on to teach those who are graduating with any level of education in field, and more nurse practitioners, informatics professionals, leaders and those in strategic roles to guide the profession as others retire. With rising burnout rates, financial burdens that oen come with higher education and barriers to entry due to family constraints and obligations, the questions become: How can the profession incentivize more individ- uals to pursue advanced degrees? And why should they? e why Drs. Rowen, Brooks and Dabrow Woods all worked while they were pursuing advanced degrees in nursing, which wasn't easy, but resoundingly all three echoed that it was worth it. "When I got my doctorate, I had two young daughters," Dr. Rowen said. "It was a piece of work to be in a leadership role and do that at the same time. … Is it worth it? Yes. I think it just makes you a better professional in what- ever specialty in nursing you're going into. And I don't think you need to do it quick- ly. And it doesn't need to necessarily incur debt, and it does position you ultimately for more options and for pay options that are at increased rates." Dr. Rowen said she always wanted to be a nurse. Similarly, Dr. Brooks did as well and even dressed up as a nurse for Halloween growing up, she shared. Her "why" was sim- ply that she loves caring for people, she loves being a nurse and wanted to further special- ize that passion to provide better care to pa- tients. "As the profession has evolved and grown, we're beginning to understand much more that we need nurses with higher levels of education because of the way that health- care and the population have changed," Dr. Brooks said. "Having these different special- ties [will] teach nurses how to care for differ- ent people. … So graduate school is that time to become specialized and then that allows us to care for the different kinds of patients we have in our country." Dr. Dabrow Woods said her decision to pursue an advanced career in nursing was to initially become a nurse practitioner and increase the impact of care she was having on patient lives and to gain an understand- ing about where healthcare truly needs im- provement — then fill the gaps. "e best decisions I ever made in nursing were one, to go for my master's degree and become a nurse practitioner. e second was to go for my doctorate in nursing practice," she said. "It's allowed me to do my job more effectively, but it also has allowed me to have a much better understanding what health- care currently is, where deficits are and what we need to do to improve healthcare, not only locally where I live, but in our country as well as globally, giving me that additional knowledge that I did not have before." e how While pursuing advanced degrees in nursing helped them tremendously, the three still ac- knowledge that some of the challenges can make the pursuit daunting. Financially, nurses on average go into around $47,321 of debt aer pursuing a master's de- gree, according to NerdWallet. Between that and juggling a job and personal responsibil- ities, some may feel like it is more difficult to go back to school than it is worth. While no perfect solution exists, Nicole Bee- son, RN, MSN, chief nursing officer of the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center — and now Dr. Beeson — told Beck- er's what hospitals and health systems can do better to support and incentivize those who want to get advanced degrees is offer tuition assistance and be as flexible as pos- sible with scheduling as they work through the program. As for nurses: Look for places that will support you in these ways and go at your own pace. "ere is no doubt education is an invest- ment. It is an investment of your time, your focus and your financial resources," Ms. Bee- son said. "at being said, it pays dividends in the long haul over the duration of your ca- reer. So what I would say is, I don't see a rea- son to go into a massive amount of debt for your education when there are resources that provide this, and if you can do it at a pace with which you're able to pay through your own means and also through either minimal loans or through your employer reimburse- ment, that helps. It's really all about pace and prioritization as well."