Nurses again voted top professionals
Nurses have reportedly been voted Australia’s most ethical and trusted professionals for the 20th consecutive year. The Roy Morgan Image of Professions Survey 2014 found 91% of Australians aged 14 and over, placed nurses at ‘number one’ in terms of ethics and honesty.
This was a 1% increase on the previous year.
Pharmacists and doctors were ranked second and third respectively.
According to the national survey of 30 professions, nurses are still “leading the way as Australia’s most respected profession for very high or high ethics and honesty.”
Lee Thomas, Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) federal secretary, described it as a “great achievement” for nurses to have again been rated Australia’s leading professionals in terms of ethics and honesty.
“Nurses represent the largest proportion of Australia’s health workforce and continue to deliver quality patient care to people of all ages, working in hospital emergency departments, maternity, mental health and aged care facilities,” Ms Thomas said.
“Australia needs to urgently develop and implement viable solutions to ensure there is a future nursing and midwifery workforce to replace current nursing staff who are set to retire over the next 15 to 20 years.”
Ms Thomas urged the federal government to work with states and territories and key stakeholders like the ANMF, to fund strategies to create decent jobs for Australia’s “highly educated” nursing and midwifery graduates who still cannot find employment.
The ANMF, with more than 233,000 members, is the professional and industrial voice for nurses, midwives and assistants in nursing in Australia.
