[Interview] Nicole Kerkenbush Chief Nursing and Performance Officer, Monument Health

A Gallup poll released earlier this year showed that, for the 20th year in a row, nurses are the most trusted professionals in the US. Even as healthcare systems struggle to find nurses, 81% percent of those polled said they had very high trust in nurses. Medical doctors rank second on the list at 67% and pharmacists rank fourth. 

We spoke with Nicole Kerkenbush, Chief Nursing and Performance Officer at Monument Health, for some insight into the poll and what it means for the nursing profession in the post-pandemic era.

MED: Why do you think nurses continue to rank so high in the annual Gallup poll?

NK: Like the military, which also tend to rank very high on the trust scale, nurses are seen as always being there for their communities. This applies no matter what kind of nurse they are. If they are in home health, they help people stay in their homes. If they are a pediatric nurse, they help children stay healthy. If they are a hospice nurse, they help people at the end of life. I think nurses are seen as having a service mindset.

MED: What is different about nurses, as far as the public is concerned, from others who also care for them in the healthcare setting?

NK: I think one thing is that almost everyone knows a nurse and that is not necessarily true of other types of providers. Nurses are in our churches, our schools, and our neighborhoods. Whenever I have moved to a new place, it gets around very quickly that there is a nurse living nearby. If you call a triage line because you are sick, it's a nurse that picks up. 

MED: All around the country, there are more vacant positions for nurses than there are nurses to fill them. Why do you think this is?

NK: Like everyone else, we had to deal with the pandemic in our personal lives. But it also created a lot of stress in our professional lives. Workplace violence has grown the fastest and been the most extreme in healthcare. When people are seeking healthcare, they are not coming to us as their best self anyway. But I think that the pandemic has given some people the idea that it is OK to be uncivil. The other thing is that we had to limit visitors, even though people want to be with their loved ones when they are sick. So that added to the stress.

MED: Why would you say nursing is still a good profession to get into?

NK: People are leaving the traditional workforce and part of the reason is that they want to integrate their work and their life more, to find work-life harmony. They also want to feel like they are making a difference. In nursing, you can not only make a real difference, but you can choose how you want to do it. We have nurses in finance, in IT, and in law. We have nurses who work full-time or part-time, during the day or at night. It is a career that can adapt to your life. At the same time, there is real security. We are always going to have people who get sick and need care. 

WE: You can find a link to the full Gallup Poll on our website.