Nursing Most Ethical Profession, Survey Says

For the second year in a row, a Gallup survey reveals that Americans rate nursing as the profession with the highest standards of honesty and ethics. Almost 79% of Americans say nurses have “very high” or “high” ethical standards. Pharmacists finished second with 67%—trailed by veterinarians (66%), medical doctors (63%), teachers (62%), and clergy (62%). Since nurses were added to the list in 1999, they have always finished first. According to Gladys White of the American Nurses Association, the public has had a consistent perception of high ethical standards for nurses.