Nurses aren't sitting around playing cards, they're working to fix global health

Washington State Republican Sen. Maureen Walsh’s recent comment that nurses “working at hospitals in rural regions probably play cards for a considerable amount of the day” is offensive to nurses regardless of nursing role or practice setting.

While Walsh has apologized and many nurses have expressed their disgust for her statement, voicing their disdain on social media, via emails, letters and even sending 1,700 decks of cards to Walsh, nurses can seize this moment to educate Walsh, policymakers and citizens on the role and contributions of nurses who daily care for individuals and communities worldwide to help people achieve health.

As nurses with decades of service to the profession, we know firsthand the tremendous work that our colleagues do as clinicians, researchers, educators and policy advocates. On a daily basis, we work alongside and in collaboration with very talented, educated and committed individuals who consider it an honor to serve in this capacity.

Whether in rural or urban areas, the demands associated with providing quality care require that we spend our working hours doing just that, not engaging in activities that do not lead to better outcomes for those we serve. To do otherwise would be disrespectful to the profession and would violate nursing’s contract with society.

We do not take the distinction of being the most trusted profession lightly. For 17 consecutive years Gallup poll results revealed that more than four in five Americans, or 84 percent, rated nurses’ honesty and ethical standards as very high or high compared to 20 other professions.

https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/441022-nurses-arent-sitting-around-playing-cards-theyre-working-to-fix-global