Why are BSN-to-PhD programs (Letters, February, in response to "BSN-to-PhD Programs: A Bad Idea,"Editorial, October 2003) a bad idea when nursing desperately needs well-prepared researchers who will spend their lives researching and adding to the science of nursing? The National Institute of Nursing Research has pushed for nurse researchers to be trained at a younger age so that they will have at least 30 years to develop and expand their research.

Faculty members who research are needed to complement those skilled in clinical practice so that students understand how practice is grounded in research. Researchers help students read and interpret studies and see how they relate to patient problems and patient populations. Nursing students need to be exposed to research early in their education in order to recognize its importance and relevance to improving patient outcomes.

The BSN-to-PhD program at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing offers the opportunity to make a career of nursing research to a small but growing number of applicants each year. These students obtain National Research Service Awards and grants from such organizations as the American Nurses Foundation and the Neuroscience Nursing Foundation, present papers and posters at regional and national scientific meetings, and publish manuscripts in journals. Students focus on such areas as genetics, medication adherence, and substance abuse. Each student is mentored by faculty members who demonstrate the relationship between research and practice. Students quickly learn how researchers and clinicians must work together.

Research needs to be grounded in clinical practice and must return to clinical practice, otherwise it's not meaningful research for a practice discipline. The ultimate goal is to advance the science and practice of nursing. Given this, BSN-to-PhD programs are another means by which nursing can attract those who want to be researchers.

Judith A. Erlen, PhD, RN, FAAN

Pittsburgh, PA