ANA Responds to TV Show's Portrayal of Male Nurses

January 31, 2003

Bill Lawrence Executive Producer and Creator of Scrubs
c/o NBC Viewer Relations
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, NY 10112

Dear Mr. Lawrence:

I am sending this letter in response to NBC's television program Scrubs' Jan. 30 episode, which tastelessly makes fun of men who choose to become nurses and degrades the profession in general.

I'm sure you are aware that we are in the midst of a nationwide nursing shortage and that fewer young people -- men and women alike -- are choosing nursing as a career. And while the causes of the nursing shortage are complex, society's image of nursing does play a significant role.

The problem is that portrayals, such as the one on the Jan. 30 episode of Scrubs, while fictional, still harm the profession by reinforcing negative, unrealistic and sexist stereotypes of nurses, and often damage nurse recruitment efforts as a result.

What's more, portrayals such as the one on Scrubs send a message that the men and women who become nurses are not intelligent, valued and respected health care professionals.

Yet, nursing is among the most respected and trusted professions in the nation. Countless surveys indicate that the American public appreciates and respects the men and women who nobly care for the sick and injured among us.

So, given these overwhelming facts, we hope that future episodes of Scrubs will refrain from performing a disservice to a society that is badly in need of more nurses, and instead portray nurses -- men and women alike -- as well-respected, hard-working career professionals. In other words, rather than relying on the tired portrayal of nurse-as-doctor's-love-interest, why not take it one step further and use comedy to cleverly illustrate the real life-and-death and other critical patient-care issues that nurses face every day? Or to put it more succinctly, why not let humor heal?

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Barbara A. Blakeney, MS, APRN,BC, ANP
President
American Nurses Association

2003 press releases

Past press releases:
2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996

Search	Contact ANA	Join/Renew Membership	Members Only	Online CE
NursingInsiderSpecial Offersnursesbooks.org © 2008 The American Nurses Association, Inc. All Rights Reserved Copyright Policy | Privacy Statement