Does the U.S. Set the Standard for Nursing in Other Countries? The United States recognizes nurses as an LPN, licensed practical nursing, BSN, master of science in nursing, and doctoral of nursing. There are seven layers of nursing in the inter states, all connected, and all essential for the care of patients. Currently Australia is number one in doctorate of nursing graduates. Canadian nursing is divided into stages, 3 years of education in a technical nursing program qualifies you as an assistant nurse only. 3 years in a college and you can become a registered nurse, after taking the examination. China has ample opportunities for those to attend vocational schools for nursing, however few educational schools offer masters degree or doctoral programs. For this reason, most nurses in China have licensed Practical or Registered Nursing licenses. It is almost unheard of to continue education in this field within China. Britain trains nurses heavily in the area of pharmacology, with education of treatment more as a secondary study. They allow for continuing education; however you are expected to have pharmaceutical knowledge, as well as social work and psychology. Australia puts a heavy emphasis on their nursing programs and continuing education. Nurses study biological science, social science and pharmacology, along with the regular fundamentals of nursing. Australia encourages nurses to continue education, and often covers costs for educational purposes. Related: What’s the Difference Between an RN and an LPN? Which Country Prevails It's a little difficult to say because each country has different styles of offering education to nurses. In terms of nurses that have received the most education, Australia is on top, followed by the United States. In terms of opportunity to attend school, Britain wins out there, they offer many programs to anyone wanting to attend nursing school. As far as nurses being allowed to perform procedures and do more with patients, the United States comes out on top. Nurses can remove tubes from patient’s throats and noses, in other countries this is done by doctors only. Nurses in the United States do more with patients than nurses in other
countries. Doctors rely heavily on nurses to provide information on the patient's status. This practice keeps cost down somewhat, by calling doctors in only when necessary. As a result of the increase duties, nurses in the United States essentially do set high standards for nurses elsewhere, and currently the United States comes out on top in most nursing categories. As for which county is at the end of the list, it would be China, mainly due to the lack of advanced education available. As a general rule, the country that has the most medical advances would have the most trained and up to date nurses, which again is currently the United States. Some areas such as Haiti have so few trained nurses, that if you can pass a standard first aid and CPR course, you can obtain a certificate to practice nursing, although you are not considered a nurse. Areas such as this often rely of humanitarian aid workers and medical personnel from other areas, to train and educate their nurses on the more modern methods of treatment. Standards are very different in underserved areas; hospitals are often makeshift buildings with donated beds all in one area. The nurses working in these conditions do well considering what they have, yet they lack the training of nurses in more developed nations. Related: How to Properly Express a Complaint at Work Switzerland has been ahead of the U.S. in nursing standards and education; however, in recent years the U.S. has not only caught up, but also passed the Swiss standard of nursing. Currently and independent review committee rates nursing standards as follows: 1.
2. 3. 4.
U.S.A. – The American guidelines and criteria for being a registered or vocational nurse remain high. The standard exam to obtain a nursing license demonstrates that you know the basics of nursing, and that you are qualified to administer medication, injections, and that you can also perform procedures on patients with minimal supervision. Switzerland- the Swiss standards for nursing are right behind American standards, in fact, you could expect to receive the same care in a Swiss hospital as one in America. Britain and Canada tie at number 3- You would receive good care, however, not quite up to American standards. China- in china, you would notice a difference. You would need to wait for a doctor for many things nurses do in America, so the wait times can be extensive.
You probably already knew this, but if you are a nurse in the United States, you are some of the best in the world. Related: Esteemed Registered Nurse Joy K. Darkes, RN, BSN, will be Honorably Mentioned in the Worldwide Leaders in Healthcare Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter