Georgia Board of Nursing Approves Changes in Nursing Program at Southwest Georgia Technical College

The Georgia Board of Nursing has recently approved proposed changes to the Associate Degree Nursing program (ADN) at Southwest Georgia Technical College (SWGTC). The changes are meant to attract more students into nursing and to help students complete the program.

According to Tammy Bryant, ADN instructor at (SWGTC), these changes will impact enrollment in a big way. “We are excited about these changes and the benefits they will bring to our program,” Bryant said. “We expect a positive impact with both enrollment and retention of students.”

One of the changes approved by the GBN is allowing SWGTC to offer a once per week class for the LPN Bridge Program. “The Bridge program is for licensed practical nurses who want to continue their education and become Registered nurses,” Bryant said. “It has been difficult in the past for a lot of nurses to earn their RN because they are working and do not have the time to attend classes three or four days per week. This change to once a week classes, will make an enormous difference to them and the demands on their time,” said Bryant. This change will become effective January of 2010.

Another change will affect the generic nursing classes, or those for students without the LPN credential, offered by SWGTC. “Prior to the proposed changes to the RN Board, SWGTC admitted students into the generic nursing class once a year. Now it has been approved for us to offer admission into the program twice a year, giving us a greater opportunity to satisfy the demand for more nurses in the healthcare field. We expect this change to have a huge impact on our enrollment in the program and have a positive impact on helping alleviate some of the shortage of nurses in our area,” said Bryant.

“The generic nursing class is for those coming into the program without an LPN credential such as recent high school graduates or others who want to become nurses, but have not had any nursing courses or training in the past.” Bryant stated that those interested in the generic nursing class must first complete core classes to be eligible.

 “We are very pleased that the Georgia Board of Nursing approved these changes for us and it will have a positive impact on the number of nurses we can train and graduate. One of the reasons the Board approved the changes we asked for is due in part to the fact that our most recent graduating class from the ADN program achieved an impressive 100% passing rate on the state board exam,” said Bryant.

More information on the ADN program at SWGTC may be obtained by calling 225-4096.