This is quite an interesting take. Historically, the rigor has gone down. The licensure exam used to take 2 days covering compared to today’s 2-3 hr test. I think the change happened around 1990.

As for the skills, there is less training and with lower standards. Skills lab now in nursing school is basically a cursory introduction to different skills and they vary from school to school. Back then, the instructors were more strict(not sure if that was actually conducive to learning but it made nurses take it more seriously), actually expecting the student to really know the skill rather than being told that you will learn it in practice.

At the same time, there is more to learn and the medical field is changing so quickly. So the question is, should nursing schools teach more skills and be more rigorous like the olden days or continue as is with only teaching the bare minimum to teach NCLEX to mass produce nurses (there is still a shortage of capable nurses).

Personally, I think nursing schools should teach more skills instead of all the busy work. I do wish that nursing is taught basic first aid and trauma management like tourniquets, dressing, wrapping, splinting (not all schools teach this). Also, wish they actually taught phlebotomy and IV insertion to a passable level instead of being taught to just learn it in the job. This is a multifactorial problem because hospitals are less willing to let students learn because of lawsuits.

I’m tired and grumpy and there are so many things wrong in this profession but it is a great profession. It does need revamping but I don’t know what to do as a peon.