U N I V E R S I T Y O F C E N T R A L F L O R I D A College of Nursing

1. U N I V E R S I T Y O F C E N T R A L F L O R I D A College of Nursing A Partnership for Concurrent ASN-BSN Enrollment for Degree Completion Linda M. Hennig, EdD, RN Jean D. Leuner, PhD, RN Stephen Heglund, PhD, ARNP Cheryl Cicotti, MSN, RN SREB 11/12/12

2. Objectives • Describe the essential components of a partnership between a baccalaureate nursing program and an associate degree nursing program for concurrent enrollment toward baccalaureate degree completion.

3. Objectives 2. Describe at least two barriers to implementation of this unique educational collaboration. 3. Describe at least two facilitators to implementation of this unique educational collaboration.

4. BackgroundRN-BSN PROGRAM • 25-year history of partnering with area community /state colleges to facilitate the transition of ASN graduates into a BSN completion program. • RN-BSN program became available online 1997

5. BASIC PROGRAM • Overflowing pool of qualified applicants each year for basic baccalaureate (BSN) program • Students wait-listed but odds of admission low • Must reapply each year • Unable to increase capacity

6. UCF-SCC PartnershipHow it began……2003 Following considerable planning and collaboration: Seminole community College ASN program • Offered to increase available seats • Reserved a percentage of seats for students on the UCF BSN admission wait list. University of Central Florida BSN program • Carefully constructed a concurrent ASN-BSN curriculum. • Allowed an equal or greater number of qualified SCC students to participate in the program • Students admitted to BOTH programs concurrently.

7. Curriculum Development • Pre-requisites for both programs were evaluated • Nursing curricula of both BSN and ASN were compared • BSN courses were sequenced around the ASN courses each term • Consideration given to what knowledge was pre-requisite to each BSN course. • While enrolled in ASN program, 1-2 BSN courses taken each term • Concurrent BSN curriculum (31 credits) patterned after the RN-BSN curriculum to avoid duplication

8. BSN completion • Students complete ASN program, take NCLEX • Must pass NCLEX in order to complete BSN program • Remaining credits (9-12) taken either full-time or part-time

9. Admission requirements Students must: • meet the nursing pre-requisite requirements for both ASN and BSN programs • meet the general education requirements (or hold an AA) • be eligible for admission to UCF • have an overall cumulative GPA of 3.0 • Have acceptable score on ATI TEAS

10. Students admitted SSC Year SSC Concurrent Jan. 2003 24 10 2003-2004 108 29 2004-2005 107 54 2005-2006 130 62 2006-2007 166 61 2007-2008 184 71 2008-2009 184 73 2009-2010 182 76 2010-2011 200 156 Goal of this program is to have 100% of their students admitted to the Concurrent Program.

11. Current status • 2nd concurrent program with Valencia College 2010 began 2010 • 3rd pilot concurrent program with Lake-Sumter Community College began 2012 • Two additional schools wanting a partnership have entered into serious discussion

12. Admissions all sites • SSC 70 + 70 (will increase to 85 x 2 in 2013) (increase to 100 x2 in 2014) • VC 40 (will increase to 2x yr in 2013) • LSCC 20 (will increase seats gradually) More applicants than available seats = strong applicant pool Total enrollment Fall 2012 = 378

13. Plan of study • POS different at each partnering school • Examples • 5 semester plan • 4 semester plan (ASN Summer off) • Addition of Pathophysiology for next year instead of two electives

14. Barriers Insufficient amount of • faculty • advising and recruitment personnel • lead time for intensive planning • office and classroom space

15. Barriers Other: • a mismatch of transfer credit interpretation between schools • Scheduling of UCF courses around the ASN classes, clinical, and labs • ASN faculty resistance and concerns over student workload. • the coordination of financial aid packages across two schools • lack of formal agreements between schools

16. Actions to overcome barriers • Include Concurrent Program information on web site and catalogs for both schools • Hold regularly scheduled information sessions • Faculty members and Advisors from both schools attend information sessions • ASN advisors work closely with UCF nursing faculty/advisor for admission decisions

17. Actions to overcome barriers • Additional resources added as enrollment has grown. • Full-time UCF faculty member on all campuses • Administrative assistant hired for largest program • Designated advisors from both schools • UCF faculty member attends ASN faculty meetings. • Faculty members of both programs communicate early about any student difficulties

18. Facilitators • demand for BSN by the employers • demand for the BSN from prospective students • Enrolling highly motivated students • Motivation from both schools to increase the percentage of BSN prepared nurses in the profession

19. Benefits • addresses community demand for more BSN prepared nurses. • BSN improves graduates’ marketability (local hospitals give preference to BSN) • Accelerates pathway to BSN and graduate degrees • Students excited by shortened educational path • Recruitment strategy for Community/State college

20. Other positive outcomes • SCC NCLEX pass rate averaged 83.5% for five years before Concurrent program (2000-2004) • Increased to average 91.4% from 2007-2011 • 2011  96.79 • 2010  90.71 • 2009  93.38 • 2008   87.26 • 2007  89.47 http://www.doh.state.fl.us/mqa/nursing/nur_edu_info.html#down2

21. Student feedback Positive: • ability to start BSN early • convenience of taking courses at community college or online • high level of faculty support and flexibility • ability to integrate BSN content with basic ASN content while learning both Negative: • juggling both curricula simultaneously • Usually unable to have gainful employment

22. End of program evaluations Overall Low response rate Of those responding • 80% indicated able to manage time and keep up with assignments in both programs. • 80% indicate will pursue graduate nursing degree within 5 years

23. Lessons learned • Rapid expansion requires resources- (faculty, staff, facilities) • Advisement is labor intensive and needs to occur 1-2 years in advance for highest success. • Open communication between nursing programs is essential. • Strong communication between support services (i.e. financial aid, registrar) of both institutions is critical • Must have ASN and BSN faculty “buy-in”

24. The Future • Nursing schools continue to turn away thousands of qualified applicants because of budget , clinical resources and faculty shortages. • Shortage of RNs which is expected to increase • Half of all current nursing faculty expected to retire in the next decade. • The institute of Medicine (IOM) recommended by 2020, 80% of all RNs in the USA should hold a BSN and the # of nurse held doctorates should double . • IOM recommends creation of more efficient pathways to obtain more education after initial licensure. Aiken,L. (2011) The future of nursing. NEJM 364:3:196-198

25. Nurses whose initial degree is an Associate degree are less likely to pursue graduate degrees than are nurses whose initial degree is a BSN • Twice as many initial BSN graduates go on to obtain their doctorate as do ASN • Increasing the number of BSN graduates should produce more nurses for graduate school

26. Aiken (2011) sees a future for nursing where ALL pre-licensure programs grant bachelor’s degrees. Requires • collaborative partnerships between institutions; • community colleges to grant bachelors degrees; • high use of distance learning technologies. • Aiken,L. (2011) The future of nursing. NEJM 364:3:196-198

27. Summary • Concurrent ASN/BSN Enrollment Program prime example of collaboration across program types • Models a relatively efficient pathway to help meet goal of IOM report calling for 80% of all RNs to hold a BSN by 2020

28. Resources • http://www.nursing.ucf.edu/images/pdf/UCF-SeminoleConcurrentInfoPacket.pdf

29. Thank You! Linda.Hennig@ucf.edu Linda Hennig Associate Dean University of Central Florida