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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – SILVER SPRING, MD — For the 12th year, nurses were voted the most trusted profession in America in Gallup’s annual survey that ranks professions based on their honesty and ethical standards. Eighty-four percent of Americans rated nurses’ honesty and ethical standards as “very high” or “high.”
“The public’s continued trust in nurses is well-placed, and reflects an appreciation for the many ways nurses provide expert care and advocacy,” said ANA President Karen A. Daley, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN. “Major national policy initiatives also show trust in nurses. The Affordable Care Act and the Future of Nursing recommendations call on nurses to take more leadership roles and collaborate fully with other professionals in providing essential health care to a growing number of people who will have greater access to services.”
Since the profession’s first appearance in the poll in 1999, nurses have received the highest ranking each year except in 2001, when firefighters ranked first.
Nurses consistently demonstrate honesty and high ethical standards in their everyday dealings with patients and their families. However, a recent high-profile legal case underscored the commitment nurses demonstrate to patient safety and quality. In 2009, two Texas nurses reported a physician at their hospital for unsafe practices. The nurses withstood intimidation and criminal charges, but held firm to their principles. Justice ultimately prevailed when the legal battles concluded in November. Four individuals involved with bringing charges against the nurses were either convicted or pled guilty to misuse of official information and retaliation.
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The ANA is the only full-service professional organization representing the interests of the nation’s 3.1 million registered nurses through its constituent and state nurses associations and its organizational affiliates. The ANA advances the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the rights of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Congress and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.
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