Nurses Ranked Most Trusted Profession for 24th Straight Year

SILVER SPRING, MD – January 12, 2026 – For the 24th consecutive year, the American public has named nurses the most honest and ethical profession in the nation, according to Gallup’s annual poll. The results, celebrated by the American Nurses Association (ANA), show that 75 percent of Americans rate the honesty and ethical standards of nurses as “very high” or “high,” a testament to the profession's enduring bond with the public it serves.

This remarkable streak, unbroken since nurses were consistently added to the poll in 1999 (with the sole exception of 2001, when firefighters were honored post-9/11), solidifies the profession as a bedrock of public confidence. While other professions have seen trust fluctuate, nursing has remained the consistent leader, outpacing military veterans (67%), grade-school teachers (61%), and medical doctors (57%) in the latest survey.

“Year after year, the American public turns to nurses as the most trusted professionals in the nation,” said Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, President of the American Nurses Association, in a statement. “After 24 consecutive years at the top of this Gallup poll, this trust is more than an accolade. It affirms the essential leadership role nurses play on the national stage of healthcare.”

A Legacy of Trust Forged at the Bedside

The foundation of this deep-seated trust is built upon the unique relationship nurses have with their patients. Experts note that nurses spend more time with patients than any other healthcare provider, often during their most vulnerable moments. This sustained presence, combined with a commitment to patient advocacy, forges a powerful connection that transcends the clinical environment.

"Patients know that a nurse will be their advocate," noted one healthcare ethicist. "In a complex and often intimidating system, the nurse is the constant, the navigator, and the defender. That's not something you can replicate; it's earned with every shift."

This trust reached a historic peak in 2020, when 89% of Americans rated nurses' ethics highly, a surge attributed to their highly visible and heroic role on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the latest figure of 75% represents a decline from that peak, and is near the lowest Gallup has recorded for the profession. This dip is part of a broader, troubling trend of declining public trust across almost all professions surveyed since 2019. Factors such as widespread misinformation and recent scandals, including a "diploma mill" scheme that produced fraudulent nursing credentials in 2023, may have contributed to this slight erosion, even as nurses remain firmly in the top spot.

A Trusted Profession Under Unprecedented Strain

The enduring public confidence in nurses stands in stark contrast to the immense challenges the profession currently faces. While patients see them as pillars of integrity, nurses are grappling with a healthcare system in crisis, marked by critical staffing shortages, rampant burnout, and unsafe working conditions.

According to a 2022 survey, a staggering 69% of nurses identified understaffing as the single biggest obstacle to providing quality patient care. This chronic shortage means less time with each patient, increasing the risk of errors and diminishing the quality of the human connection that builds trust. The strain is taking a heavy toll. More than a third of all nurses, and 37% of those with less than five years of experience, reported in a recent study that they plan to leave the profession sooner than they had originally intended.

This exodus is fueled by high rates of emotional exhaustion and disengagement. In Massachusetts, a 2022 survey found that over 80% of registered nurses felt the quality of patient care in hospitals had significantly deteriorated. These are not just statistics; they represent a workforce pushed to its limit, a reality often invisible to the public that holds them in such high esteem.

“These results also reinforce how essential it is that patients have access to care delivered by nurses in every setting,” Mensik Kennedy stated, connecting the public's trust to the need for systemic support. “The results remind us why it’s so critical that we continue to advocate for safer workplaces, sustainable staffing, and policies that support nurses.”

Leveraging Public Trust for Systemic Change

Armed with nearly a quarter-century of data affirming their trusted status, nursing organizations like the ANA are leveraging this public mandate to advocate for sweeping policy changes. The annual Gallup poll result is more than a point of pride; it has become a powerful tool in legislative battles aimed at fixing the very problems that threaten the profession and the quality of patient care.

The core of this advocacy centers on achieving safe and sustainable nurse-to-patient staffing ratios. Nurses argue that mandated ratios are essential to ensure they have the time and resources to provide the safe, ethical care the public expects. The public's unwavering trust provides a moral high ground in these debates, reframing the issue from a labor dispute to a matter of public safety.

This influence extends beyond staffing. Nurses' voices are increasingly crucial in shaping policy on workplace violence prevention, healthcare access, and the integration of new technologies. As trusted figures, their testimony in statehouses and on Capitol Hill carries significant weight, helping to cut through political noise and focus on patient outcomes. The ANA's advocacy work directly channels the public's confidence into a force for improving not only the working conditions for nurses but the health of the entire nation.

This sustained trust also positions nurses at the vanguard of healthcare innovation. As new models of care emerge, from telehealth and remote patient monitoring to AI-assisted diagnostics, public acceptance is paramount. Patients are more likely to embrace these technological shifts when they are guided and managed by a profession they implicitly trust. Nurses are therefore uniquely positioned to lead the ethical implementation of these tools, ensuring that efficiency and technology never come at the expense of compassionate, patient-centered care. By acting as the bridge between innovation and the patient, nurses can ensure the future of healthcare remains fundamentally human.