WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Nurses in the U.S. have been recognized for their efforts to protect patients by receiving the top ranking among the nation's most honest and ethical professions for the 23rd straight year, according to Gallup's annual survey.
Nurses are viewed as having 'very high' or 'high' ethical and honesty standards by 76 percent of the public, 15 points higher than any other profession.
The Gallup poll this year saw an overall decline in trust among most professions surveyed. The average trust level of professions ranked was 30 percent this year, and only 12 percent of Americans said they trusted business executives.
'Americans see nurses for who they truly are - expert caregivers who can be trusted with your life and whose ethics guide their advocacy for patient safety,' said Katie Murphy, a practicing ICU nurse, and President of the Massachusetts Nurses Association. 'Massachusetts patients are endangered by a broken healthcare system as evidenced by the Steward Healthcare bankruptcy and the dangerous conditions at Tenet Healthcare's hospitals. MNA nurses' fights against for-profit healthcare and our passionate advocacy for patient care access and safety demonstrate why nurses are the most trusted profession.'
According to Gallup, nurses have earned the highest rating in every year except in 2001 since Gallup added them to the annual survey in 1999. In 2001, firefighters earned a record 90 percent trust rating after their heroism in responding to the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers.
Remaining the most trusted profession comes with its challenges. According to the 2024 State of Nursing in Massachusetts survey, 80% of registered nurses said the quality of patient care in hospitals had gotten significantly worse over the previous two years as they described being emotionally exhausted, increasingly disengaged and more likely to leave the profession or reduce their hours.
Not having enough time with patients and caring for too many patients at one time remained the top challenges in the 2024 survey by Beacon Research.
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