A survey of professional values in graduating student nurses of traditional and accelerated baccalaureate nursing programs

The nursing profession is experiencing a significant nursing shortage. Nursing programs are attempting to meet this challenge by creating accelerated programs that allow students with degrees in other disciplines to complete a baccalaureate degree in nursing in a compressed time frame. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate whether graduating student nurses from accelerated baccalaureate nursing programs and those who are graduating from traditional four-year baccalaureate nursing programs have, via self-report data, incorporated professional values into their professional practice. More specifically, this study examined whether there was a statistical difference between the professional value instillation of traditional and accelerated graduating student nurses.; Data were derived from a survey with three parts. Part I consisted of demographic data. Part II comprised a 44 item Nurses Professional Values Scale, and Part III included eight situational values questions. Data were obtained from volunteer subjects from three universities in Northwestern Pennsylvania that offered both types of nursing curriculum.; This study found that both types of graduating student nurses did demonstrate positive professional nursing values as assessed by a questionnaire. Results also showed that there was no statistically significant difference found in the professional values of traditional versus accelerated graduating student nurses, although there were definite differences in their demographics. The accelerated student was older, had completed more years of college education, and had a higher QPA. Also, the percentage of males in the accelerated program was substantially higher than the percentage of males in the traditional program. In addition, those students in traditional programs scored higher on the application-level questions than the accelerated students.; There were no demographic variables that influenced the total professional values score when comparing the two groups, however the demographic variables of the student's university religious affiliation, as well as the student's age, gender, and ethnicity played a role in the overall professional values score.; The study was able to affirm that the efforts instituted to fill the nursing shortage void have continued to produce competent nurses that uphold the professional values of the profession.