Nursing, A.S.N.

The Associate of Science Degree in Nursing (ASN) is designed to prepare the graduate to take the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN) for registered nurses and to enter a career as a beginning practitioner of nursing. It is intended that the courses in nursing will provide the students with an awareness of the value and dignity of people and a view of the patient as an integrated, unique individual requiring nursing knowledge and skill.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Blue Ridge Community and Technical College Associate of Science in Nursing Program is to enhance the health status of the region by educating professional nurses for entry into practice as caring and competent nurse generalists.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completing the Associate of Science in Nursing Program, the graduate will:

Caring

1. Provide compassionate nursing care to patients regardless of different values, beliefs, culture, and lifestyles.

Communication

2. Demonstrate appropriate verbal, non-verbal, therapeutic, professional, and technological communication skills.
3. Facilitate collaboration among all health care team members and the patient(s).

Critical Thinking

4. Use knowledge of nursing science and disease process; critical thinking skills; and evidence based findings to demonstrate proficiency in planning safe and effective patient care.

Professionalism

5. Provide nursing care according to legal, ethical and professional standards while considering the impact of economical, political, social and demographic forces.
6. Demonstrate accountability for professional growth and lifelong learning.

Therapeutic Nursing Interventions

7. Demonstrate competency in the nursing process
8. Develop an individualized teaching plan based on assessed needs.
9. Manage the care of individual patient(s) across healthcare settings.

Accreditation

West Virginia Board of Examiners for Registered Professional Nurses
101 Dee Drive • Charleston, WV 25311 • (304) 558-3596

National Accreditation

National League for Nursing Accreditation Commission, Inc.
3343 Peachtree Rd NE • Suite 500 • Atlanta, GA 30326 • (404) 975-5000

Admission to the ASN Program

Students must be enrolled at Blue Ridge CTC and make a separate application to the nursing program, once pre-requisites are completed, or will be completed by the regular semester before admission. The ASN Program is a limited admission program and selection is highly competitive and based on academic achievement. The program admits 24 students in the fall and spring semester.

1. Application to Blue Ridge CTC
   Submit application for admissions to Admissions Counselor; Submit transcripts of previous college work with a GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4-point scale.
2. Prerequisite Courses-beginning Fall 2012
   CAHS 120 , CAHS 121 , CAHS 122 , CAHS 123 , ENGL 101 , CAHS 125 , or CAHS 127 , PSYC 203 , COMM 202 , and MATH 101  or MATH 105  or MATH 154 .

Application for Admission to AS in Nursing (ASN) Program

Students must submit to the Nursing Program an application for admission to the ASN program for either fall or spring admission, refer to the Nursing Program website for specific details. The ASN Program is a Limited Admission Program selection is highly competitive and is based on academic achievement. See the section of the CTC Catalog under admissions; refer to the section entitled “Admission to Limited Enrollment Programs”.

Core Performance Standards

Because the Nursing Program seeks to provide a safe environment for nursing students and their patients, students will be required to demonstrate physical and emotional fitness to meet the essential requirements of the nursing program. Such essential requirements include freedom from communicable disease, the ability to perform certain physical tasks, and suitable emotional fitness.

Any appraisal measures used to determine such physical and emotional fitness will be in compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, so as not to discriminate against any individual on the basis of handicap.

The essential requirements of the nursing program with examples of activities required of students during their nursing education are listed in the Essential Requirements of Nursing Programs document. This document is based on The Americans with Disabilities Act: Implications for Nursing Education. Southern Regional Education Board (March 1993), www.sreb.org.

Entrance Tests

Applicants must take the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS). The testing fee is $40 and is payable in advance. Study guidelines are available for the test.

Special Requirements for Nursing Majors

Submission of completed health data requirement prior to beginning of first semester following acceptance into the program • Submission of yearly PPD results (or chest x-ray, if appropriate) and evidence of CPR certification • Undergo a criminal background check and urine drug screening • Adhere to the policies and procedures in the Nursing Student Handbook and Policy Manuals • Special fees for standardized testing and clinical courses are required in addition to tuition • Obtain physical examination and proof of immunity to communicable diseases.

Progression

In order to progress and graduate, the student enrolled in the ASN program must:

• Receive a C or better in all courses required for the nursing program;
• Maintain a minimum of 2.0 cumulative grade point average;
• Complete all course work within three years of admission into the program.

Ratio Clock to Credit Hour

The ratio of theory clock hour to credit hour is 1:1. For students beginning the nursing program in Fall 2012, the ratio of clinical and lab clock to credit hour is 3:1. A clock hour equals 50 minutes.

Graduation

Upon successful completion of the program, graduates are eligible to apply to any state Board of Nursing to take the NCLEX-RN examination. Each state has individual requirements of applicants for licensure for examination.

Eligibility for Licensure

The nursing law of West Virginia addresses criteria for application for licensure. The West Virginia Board of Examiners for Registered Professional Nurses has the power to deny opportunity to procure licenses through testing if the applicant has willfully committed a felony under the laws of West Virginia.