When the field of nursing was still in its infancy, those who entered it were required to do little more than have a caring heart and a willing hand. They were primarily charged with soothing the patient, helping the doctor and perhaps changing a dressing or two. Over the years, however, the field evolved and today it is a field that is highly specialized, requiring intensive education and training. Research has shown that many nurses believe more education is needed if they are to be trained to the best of their ability(Nelson, 2005). "Why, almost forty years after the American Nurses Association published its position calling for the baccalaureate degree as the minimum preparation for nursing practice, has the nursing profession failed to come to an agreement on a question so critical to the future of nursing and its role in health care(Nelson, 2005)? "
             Part of the answer may lay in the fact that it is impossible to predict where the field of medicine will go over the next few decades. The world is at the threshold of extremely interesting abilities including stem cell research, and the ability to prolong not only life but also the quality of life as well. Nursing students are being asked to complete rigorous and competitive programs only to enter the field and realize that they lack some of the skills they need to work. As the future approaches it will be important to provide more medically and technically advanced education to nursing students than currently available so that as their duties and responsibilities continue to increase, their competency and confidence will increase as well (Grenier, 1995).
             In 1965 the American Nursing Association determined that nurses should have bachelor's degrees if they were going to fulfill the role of RN which is a highly skilled nursing position(Nelson, 2005).
             In addition, during that same year the ANA conducted an exhaustive search of what the requirements for future nurses in the fiel...