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Why do Americans trust nurses more than doctors? Experts say nurses often spend more time with patients, serve as frontline advocates, detect subtle changes in condition, and follow a professional code of ethics that prioritizes patient interests. Recent Gallup polling found 75% of Americans rate nurses highly for honesty and ethics, compared with 57% for physicians.
The latest Gallup honesty and ethics poll found that Americans continue to trust nurses far more than physicians, continuing a decades-long trend.
The findings, highlighted in recent TIME reporting, have renewed discussion about what distinguishes nurses from other healthcare professionals and why patients continue to place such high levels of confidence in them. The reporting drew on interviews with nursing leaders, clinicians, and healthcare experts who offered insight into why nurses continue to earn such high levels of public trust.
Nurses Are Often the Face of Patient Care
Healthcare experts point to a simple reality: nurses are often the clinicians patients see most.
“The doctor is treating the disease,” Marlo Robinson, dean and vice president of Purdue Global School of Nursing, said. “We’re the ones who are with the patients living with the disease.”
That continuous presence shapes how patients experience healthcare. While physicians may see patients during rounds, procedures, or consultations, nurses are often the clinicians who remain at the bedside throughout a patient’s stay.
Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, president of the American Nurses Association, described that relationship as a defining part of nursing practice.
“We are physically and emotionally closer to patients than almost anyone in the system,” Kennedy said. “We’re there at 2 a.m. We’re there during their fear and their pain and their uncertainty, not just the decision points.”
Nurses Serve as Healthcare’s Early Warning System
Experts say nurses’ constant observation often allows them to identify subtle changes before they become medical emergencies.
“There’s this nursing expression I love, which is ‘to have eyes on,’” oncology nurse and author Theresa Brown said. “We’re the observers. We’re looking, and we’re watching. And after a while on the job, you just develop these instincts. Something is wrong here.”
Robinson described nurses as healthcare’s “early warning system,” noting that experienced nurses often recognize concerning changes in breathing patterns, skin tone, fatigue, oxygen levels, or behavior before monitoring equipment signals a problem.
Research has repeatedly linked adequate nurse staffing levels with improved patient outcomes, lower complication rates, and reduced mortality, underscoring the importance of nurses’ ongoing surveillance role.
Patients Often Share More With Nurses
Trust is not built solely through visibility. It is also shaped by communication, experts say.
Patients frequently ask nurses questions they hesitate to ask physicians, according to Kennedy. Those conversations often involve symptoms, fears, concerns, or practical questions that patients may not consider important enough to raise during a physician encounter.
“Patients ask doctors the big questions,” Kennedy said. “They ask nurses the small ones. And the small ones often turn out to be the ones that matter.”
Nurses also frequently serve as translators of complex medical information, helping patients understand diagnoses, treatments, medications, and care plans.
“Patients see nurses as more approachable,” patient advocate and former ICU nurse Teri Frykenberg said. “We’re the ones who translate.”
That trust often gives nurses a more complete understanding of what patients are experiencing, allowing them to relay important information back to the healthcare team.
Nursing Education Emphasizes Advocacy and Communication
Experts say public trust in nurses stems from more than compassion alone.
“You have to take chemistry, anatomy, physiology, genetics, pharmacology,” Brown said. “It’s not just about being a nice person. There is a knowledge base to the field.”
Along with rigorous scientific training, nursing education emphasizes communication, patient advocacy, and active listening. Nurses are trained to help patients understand complex medical information and navigate difficult healthcare decisions.
Ethics and Advocacy Matter
Experts also point to nursing’s professional code of ethics, which establishes that a nurse’s primary commitment is to the patient.
The American Nurses Association’s Code of Ethics provides nurses with both the authority and responsibility to advocate when patient interests conflict with organizational priorities.
“We protect the patient from the interests of the system,” Kennedy said.
Experts suggest that patients may not know the details of the nursing code of ethics, but they often recognize the advocacy role nurses play at the bedside.
What the Trust Gap Means for Healthcare
Trust influences whether patients share concerns, follow treatment recommendations, and feel supported during vulnerable moments. As healthcare organizations continue to grapple with workforce shortages, burnout, and challenges in patient engagement, the latest Gallup findings suggest that nursing remains one of healthcare’s most trusted and influential professions.
As Robinson noted, some of the deepest expressions of trust emerge when patients and families face life’s most difficult moments and turn to nurses for expertise, advocacy, and support.
This article is based on reporting originally published by TIME.
