Lone Star College System is pushing to have a four-year nursing program implemented at LSC-Montgomery following the 2017 legislative session for students interested in obtaining their Bachelor of Science in nursing degrees.
Should this program be approved during the 2017 legislative session, LSCS could begin offering the four-year degrees as soon as the spring semester of 2018, said Amos McDonald, LSCS vice chancellor of external affairs. The bill has not been filed yet. However, college officials are having conversations with several legislators about filing, McDonald said.
“It would largely depend on how the legislation is written to know how soon this program can be implemented,” he said. “Our request of the Legislature is really an extension of an existing bachelor degree pilot program currently being offered by three [other] community colleges, each designed to meet community demand. Lone Star College is not seeking appropriations for this program. This is a win for the community and for our nurses.”
The four-year degree program would only be offered at LSC-Montgomery due to the shortage of health care workers in its service area, McDonald said. Colleges offering the four-year degree pilot programs include Midland, South Texas and Brazosport colleges. All three offer a bachelor’s degree in applied technology. South Texas College also offers a bachelor’s degree in applied science.
“It is sometimes difficult for students to transfer to a four-year university, which are not close to home and are much more expensive,” McDonald said. “This also will provide an opportunity to assist the 8,000-plus nurses in our service area working for hospitals who have an interest in obtaining their [Bachelor of science in nursing].”
In 2010, the American Nurses Credentialing Center adopted new criteria for obtaining magnet status, which is the highest distinction health care organizations can receive for nursing. One new stipulation would require 80 percent of a hospital’s nursing staff to have bachelor’s degrees by 2020, said Kerrie Guerrero, vice president and chief nursing officer at Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital.
“For this reason, we will be seeking nursing professionals with four-year degrees,” Guerrero said. “A baccalaureate nursing program in The Woodlands will help provide a qualified applicant pool as we expand our nursing staff in the future.”
The Institute of Medicine’s 2010 report on the Future of Nursing also reported that by 2020, 80 percent of the nursing workforce should have a Bachelors of Science degree in nursing, said Catherine Giegerich, vice president and chief nursing officer at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital.
“To achieve that goal and keep pace with nursing needs, we need access to as many high-quality baccalaureate nursing programs as possible,” she said. “Any academic institution seeking to fill that need is definitely heading in the right direction.”
