Nurses Are Most Honest and Ethical

Gallup Poll Results are in and Nurses Top the List Again!

Feb 1, 2007

Each year Gallup condicts a poll to determine American's views regading the most honest and ethical professionals. It is no surprise to nurses that they top the list.

Nurses for the eighth consecutive year have scored in the top rankings in the Gallup Poll of The Most Honest and Ethical Professions. In the poll conducted by Gallup from December 8-10, 2006, 84% of Americans described nurses' ethics as either "very high" or "high." Only 2% of those polled said nurses have "low" ethical standards, and 14% considered nurses standards to be "average."

According to USA Today, in this annual Gallup Poll in 1999, nurses ranked number one; but their overall combined score of "high" and "very high" was 73%. As nurses assume more responsibilities in the changing realm of health care today, it is important that they be trusted. (This poll reflects that they are.) Educatiing patients is a primary role for nurses, and patients should trust those who are assisting them to achieve optimal health status.

In a press release from the California Nurses Association, Deborah Burger president of the association stated, "We are honored and gratified by those findings. Nothing is more critical to nurses than the sacred bond we have with our patients and the public." She went on to say, "Nurses have a particular obligation to advocate for our patients. In this era of cold-hearted, corporate medical care, nurses have had to become especially adept at fighting to ensure that patients receive the care they need and deserve."

In 2001, after the events of 9/11, fire fighters topped Gallup's poll and nurses came in second, but ever since then, nurses have achieved the highest ranking in this annual Gallup Poll.

Other Medical Professions Rank High

After nurses, the next highest ranking honest and ethical professions for 2006 were

druggists or pharmacists at 73%
veterinarians at 71%
medical doctors at 69%
dentists at 62%

Psychiatrists and chiropractors were the other medical professionals included in the poll. They were considered more average among those polled and their numbers were 38% and 36% respectively.

The Lowest Ranking

Those cited as least ethical or honest were car salesmen at 7%.

Others ranking among the lowest included:

Advertising practitioners at 11%
HMO managers at 12%
insurance salesmen at 13%
Congressmen at 14%
Senators at 15%.

The Rest of the Group

Other professions ranked in this poll included engineers (61%), college teachers (58%), clergy (58%), policemen (54%), bankers (37%), journalists (26%), state governors (22%), business executives (18%), lawyers (18%), and stockbrokers (17%).

Gallup conducted this poll December 8-10, 2006 via telephone and reports the margin of error to be +/-3 percentage points.