Judge denies injunction for online nursing college in California licensing case

A Sacramento Superior Court judge denied Nightingale College's request for a preliminary injunction in its legal dispute with the California Board of Registered Nursing, according to 10news.com. The ruling means hundreds of graduates from the online nursing college will have to wait longer to find out if they can work as nurses in California and may need to repeat semesters of school.

Judge Stephen Acquisto agreed with the nursing board's interpretation of state law that requires out-of-state nursing graduates to complete the same minimum clinical training as California graduates. The judge described this interpretation as the only reasonable one.

Nightingale College, registered in Utah, argued that the board's requirement of 500 hours of direct patient care training should not apply to its students and claimed the board cannot regulate out-of-state schools. The college also stated there is no evidence that its graduates have provided anything but high-quality medical care.

The state attorney highlighted that hundreds of applicants are affected by this dispute and warned of potential harm to the public if graduates were licensed without completing required clinical hours in specialized areas such as obstetrics or pediatrics. Nightingale College noted that nearly 2,000 of its graduates have previously been licensed in California without issues.

This ruling follows earlier reports that some graduates might have to return to school for additional training to meet California's licensing standards. The case continues to impact nursing graduates in the San Diego area and statewide as the legal process unfolds.