Achieving 80% BSN by 2020: Chief Nurse Executive Role and ANCC Influence.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to understand current education level of hospital nurses and strategies used by Kentucky's chief nurse executives (CNEs) to encourage academic progression in their RN workforce.


BACKGROUND
The Institute of Medicine and American Nurses Credentialing Center called for 80% of RNs to be educated with a minimum of a BSN. CNEs have a key role in achieving that goal.


METHODS
An electronic survey was administered in fall 2013. Fifty-two Kentucky CNEs responded.


RESULTS
No hospitals in Kentucky met the BSN target. Sixty-two percent of CNEs planned to achieve 80% BSN nurses by 2020. Teaching status, hiring preferences, goals for increasing percentage of BSN nurses, and processes to facilitate advancement of nurses prepared at the associate degree level were associated with pursuit or achievement of Pathway to Excellence® or Magnet® designation. In addition to policies to support increasing educational levels, incentives offered included tuition reimbursement, career advancement, time off, and academic partnerships.


CONCLUSIONS
Increasing the proportion of BSN-prepared nurses should be a priority for CNEs. Strategies to facilitate that goal are explored. From these data, a large number of CNEs (38%) do not have a goal to achieve the recommended levels of BSN nurses. Further education and support in the rural hospitals in Kentucky are indicated to support this recommendation.
Author Affiliations: Assistant Professor (Dr Warshawsky) and Statistician Principal (Dr Wiggins), College of Nursing, University of Kentucky, Lexington; Senior Quality Outcomes Manager (Dr Lake), James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Ohio; and Interim Director of Nursing Services (Dr Velasquez), Norton Institute for Nursing, Norton Healthcare, Louisville, Kentucky.
Nora E
NE
Warshawsky
Amanda T
AT
Wiggins
Sharon W
SW
Lake
Cathy
C
Velasquez
D003406:Credentialing; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate; D006801:Humans; D007629:Kentucky; D009718:Nurse Administrators; D024802:Nurse's Role; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D009936:Organizational Innovation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires