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Press coverage
The Baltimore Sun -- On January 7, 2010, Baltimore Sun health reporter Kelly Brewington posted "TV nurses -- the good and the bad," a good discussion of the Truth's 2009 and 00s decade awards for best and worst media portrayals of nurses. Over the next few weeks, the piece was reprinted in NewsDay, the Chicago Tribune, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, the Arizona Republic, The Tampa Tribune, United Press International, the India Times, the Hartford Courant, the Deseret News (Utah), the Times Colonist (Victoria, Canada), The State (SC), the Charleston Gazette, (WV) and the Island Packet (SC). Scrubs magazine also posted a short comment about the awards lists, linking to the Sun piece. We thank Kelly Brewington and the Sun, as well as all who reprinted or commented on the Sun item.
Carolina Nursing News posted "Nurses in the Media: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly," which discussed the Truth's work and our awards, on its web site on January 5, 2010.
Journal of Infusion Nursing -- Mary Alexander, RN, MA, FAAN, Chief Executive Officer of the Infusion Nurses Society wrote a helpful editorial, "How Others See Us," in the journal's November / December 2009 issue. The editorial noted that the Truth's work can help nurses advocate for their professional image.
HCPro -- Sarah Kearns posted "The Truth about Nursing releases best and worst nurse portrayals of the decade" on the health care information company's Leaders' Lounge blog on January 5, 2010.
The Post-Standard -- On January 14, 2010, Amber Smith of the Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) posted a lengthy item on the paper's Health & Fitness Blog about the Truth's awards lists, "Nurses rate TV's best and worse nurses." Using Kelly Brewington's Baltimore Sun piece as a starting point, Smith examined the lists in much more detail, with quotations from the Truth's awards language. We thank Smith and the Post-Standard.
American Journal of Nursing -- In the January 2010 issue of the American Journal of Nursing, editor-in-chief Shawn Kennedy's editorial credited the "relentless" advocacy of the Truth for helping to change the approach of Hollywood to nursing. In her piece "A New Year Brings New Opportunities," Ms. Kennedy pointed to the Truth's advocacy in noting that the characters in the new nurse-focused U.S. television shows are "big improvements" over their counterparts in most earlier shows. We thank Ms. Kennedy and AJN for this recognition. See p. 7 of the issue.
Evolve -- On January 6, 2010, Cheryl Mee posted an extensive discussion of the nursing image, "Nursing's Image in the Media: Just in Jest", on the Evolve learning system site. Mee included substantial discussion of the Truth's work. On January 14, Evolve published a short discussion of the Truth's Decade awards, "Best and Worst Nursing Portrayals of the Last Decade." We thank Cheryl Mee and the others at Evolve.
Modern Healthcare covers the Truth's Dr. Lung Love Campaign
November 23, 2009 -- This week's issue of the influential health industry magazine Modern Healthcare included an Outliers piece headlined, "We've heard of bad raps...but this is ridiculous." The article reported on the Lung Cancer Alliance's (LCA) "Dr. Lung Love" rap video, and the Truth's campaign to persuade LCA to remove the video's "naughty nurse" elements. The piece described the video as "cringe-inducing," and it included a long quote from the Truth's analysis of why, as we said, the video "plays into powerful stereotypes viewers already have: that female nurses really are the submissive sexual playthings of male physicians.” see the article...
Truth director participates in webinar on defusing hostile behavior
December 9, 2009 -- Today the Truth's executive director Sandy Summers sat on a Dorland Health webinar panel on "Conflict and Intimidation in Health Care Settings: How To Protect Patient Care and Defuse Hostile Behaviors."
Critical Care Nurse reviews Saving Lives
December 1, 2009 -- This biweekly issue of Critical Care Nurse included a positive review of our book Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All At Risk.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation cites Saving Lives in piece on nursing's media image
November 24, 2009 -- The Truth was covered in today's RWJF column "In the Media: Advocates say media portrayals of nurses matter." The piece featured a quote from Saving Lives, which makes the point that ignorance about the nursing profession "undermines nurses’ claims to adequate staffing, nursing faculty, and other resources in our era of ruthless cost cutting."
ADVANCE for Nurses book club features Saving Lives
November 2009 -- This month, ADVANCE for Nurses book club features our book Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk. ADVANCE interviewed the co-authors of Saving Lives.
Read the book club entry
See the videos:
Then please join in the discussion at ADVANCE. Thank you!
November 2009 -- In this month's issue, the New Zealand Nurses Review included a cover story about Showtime's Nurse Jackie. The story focused on the varied opinions nurses have about the show, and Truth executive director Sandy Summers was quoted. see the article...
Los Angeles Times -- Marc Siegel's October 19, 2009 column "The Unreal World," featured quotes from our executive director Sandy Summers. The column analyzes the accuracy of health care depictions on television. This column covered the Sept. 23 episode of Mercy entitled "Can We Get That Drink Now."
"This task is a lot easier if we all participate"
September 2009 -- The South African Forum for Professional Nurse Leaders published an encouraging review of Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk 
in their Spring 2009 (September) newsletter. See the review... (scroll to page 4)
101 Global Leadership Lessons for Nurses -- Truth About Nursing executive director Sandy Summers and board member Richard Kimball jointly wrote a chapter entitled "Autonomy" in the new book 101 Global Leadership Lessons for Nurses: Shared Legacies from Leaders and their Mentors, edited by Nancy Rollins Gantz. The book was published earlier this month (October 2009) by Sigma Theta Tau International.
September 23, 2009 -- The Atlanta Journal & Constitution covered our work in its PULSE: Editor's Notes on the three new nurse-centered television shows. It features quotes from our executive director Sandy Summers. see the full article...
August 2009 -- Registered Nurse, the magazine of the California Nurses Association, has published a review of Saving Lives in its July/August 2009 issue. In her review, editor Lucia Hwang writes:
The pervasive problem in [news and entertainment] media ... is that they almost never accurately portray the important, science-based work that registered nurses do and instead reinforce damaging stereotypes of RNs, argue Sandy and Harry Summers in their persuasive book, Saving Lives.
See the full review. Scroll to pp. 16-17.
"Reform Won't Work Without Strengthening Nursing"
September 3, 2009 -- Today Kaiser Health News published an op-ed by Truth About Nursing executive director Sandy Summers arguing that the role of nursing in the success of U.S. health reform must not be overlooked. Summers explains that nurses are critical both to expanding access to care and containing costs, which are key elements of the reform proposals now under consideration. Although nurses' holistic, preventative focus is vital to reform, harnessing the power of nursing will require more resources for nurses' clinical practice, education, and research. And long-term change, Summers notes, will in turn require that we improve our understanding of the value of nursing, and overcome the female stereotypes that continue to plague the profession. see the full op-ed...
Los Angeles Times -- Marc Siegel's August 24 column "The Unreal World," featured quotes from our executive director Sandy Summers. The column analyzes the accuracy of health care depictions on television. This column covered an episode of HawthoRNe entitled "Mother's Day."
California Nurses Association Registered Nurse -- In the June 2009 issue of Registered Nurse, Lucia Hwang interviewed Sandy Summers for a profile of the Truth's work, our book Saving Lives and a look at this summer's television shows on nursing in the article "RNs on Primetime" (scroll to pp. 7-8).
KNPR -- On August 10, The Truth's executive director Sandy Summers appeared on the "State of Nevada" program on KNPR, the Las Vegas affiliate of NPR. Listen to an archive of the show.
University of Nevada newspaper -- On August 24, the editor of the University of Nevada's Rebel Yell Pashtana Usufzy profiled the Truth's work in an article entitled "Nurse advocate calls for less painful portrayals."
"Helpers?" The New York Times on Saving Lives
July 1, 2009 -- Today Tara Parker-Pope's "Well" blog at the New York Times posted a very good piece by regular contributor Theresa Brown, RN, about the key issues raised by the book Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk, written by the leaders of the Truth About Nursing. Brown framed her well-written discussion of the book by suggesting that even her beloved New York Times crossword had reinforced "outdated nursing stereotypes" by referring to nurses as "white-cap wearers" and "I.C.U. helpers." The Times deserves credit for publishing a piece framed by a critique of one of the paper's own prominent features. Brown explained that the book argues that the media's heavy reliance on nursing stereotypes, particularly in Hollywood television shows, can undermine nursing care by reducing the attention we pay to vital issues like short-staffing.
Saving Lives is an important book because it so clearly delineates how ubiquitous negative portrayals of nursing are in today's media... [The authors] argue that these images of nursing degrade the profession by portraying nurses as either vixens, saints or harridans, not college-educated health care workers with life and death responsibilities. The problem with how nurses are portrayed in the media is that it has the potential to devalue the way we view nurses in the real world.
We thank Theresa Brown, Tara Parker-Pope, and the New York Times.
See the full article, "Why Nurse Stereotypes Are Bad for Health," and take a look at the numerous and varied comments that follow at the "Well" blog. Please weigh in on this interesting discussion! Some of the comments so far suggest a need for further education about nursing autonomy and the value of nursing (e.g., #44).
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle -- Melissa Pheterson covered Saving Lives in an article entitled "TV dramas put nurses in new spotlight:
Medical professionals will keep a keen eye on three new shows," which was also printed in the New York Nurses Network magazines and RocNow.com on July 22, 2009.
New Zealand Nursing Review -- Fiona Cassie's reviewed Saving Lives in "Tuning Out the Stereotypes: Does it matter that nurses are scarcely visible in television's top-rating hospital dramas? American nursing advocactes Sandy and Harry Summers say it does and they've written the book to prove it", from the July 2009 issue.
Los Angeles Times -- Marc Siegel's bimonthly column The Unreal World featured quotes from our executive director Sandy Summers in his piece, "Few Nurses are 100% Jackie," published on June 29.
ADVANCE for Nurses -- Ainsley Maloney's article Nurse Jackie & HawthoRNe: How two new primetime TV shows are expected to portray the nursing profession to the public, features many quotes from Sandy Summers in its June 24 - July 8 edition.
Cape Cod Times -- On June 11 Cynthia McCormick discussed our book Saving Lives in an article "Nurses sidelined in TV medical dramas." It was reprinted in The New Bedford Standard Times on June 25.
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) -- "Hawthorne and Nurse Jackie give a different view of nursing" by Eric Deggans, June 7, 2009.
HealthLeaders -- "Skepticism and Some Optimism Surround New Nursing Dramas" by Keri Mucci, June 4, 2009.
Seeking some firebrand: Nursing Standard reviews Saving Lives
April 29, 2009 -- This week's issue of Nursing Standard, the U.K.'s best-selling nursing journal, included Dame Betty Kershaw's review of Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All At Risk. Dame Kershaw (right) is the education adviser of the Royal College of Nursing. She gave Saving Lives 4 out of 5 stars. In her review, Dame Kershaw emphasized that although the book is a U.S. text, "every nurse should recognise the damage that negative portrayals of nursing in the press, films, television and even books can do to our image." Indeed, she noted, the "[t]he popularity of transatlantic film and TV shows means many of the United States images referred to here are seen in the UK." Dame Kershaw explained that "this well-researched text explores the negative effects of adverse publicity and how it inhibits our professional growth," and that the "constant failure to credit nurses for the work they do is addressed." She concluded: "The book deserves wide reading. Hopefully some firebrand may even be driven to duplicate this study in the UK." We thank Dame Kershaw and Nursing Standard. see the full article...
Wisconsin Public Radio interviews Sandy Summers about Saving Lives
May 7, 2009 -- Wisconsin Public Radio host Joy Cardin did a one hour interview with the Truth's executive director Sandy Summers about our book Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayals of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk. listen to the show in Real Player...
"To solve nursing shortage, change attitudes about nurses"
May 12, 2009 -- Today the Baltimore Sun published an op-ed by Truth About Nursing executive director Sandy Summers arguing that resolution of the nursing crisis will require us to change our preconceptions about the profession. In her "Viewpoint" essay, published to celebrate International Nurses Day, Summers noted some positive recent developments. These include U.S. President Barack Obama's efforts to honor nurses and include them in policymaking, such as by appointing nurse Mary Wakefield to head the Health Resources and Services Administration and increasing funding for programs aimed at addressing the faculty shortage. However, Summers explained, long-term improvement in the clinical and educational resources available to nursing will require a fundamental change in how people see the profession. She pointed out that much of the influential mass media, from popular Hollywood television shows to the news media and advertising, continues to portray nurses as vacuous losers, scut work saints, or disposable bimbos. Only a true appreciation for nurses' life-saving skills can guarantee nurses what they need to meet the health care challenges of the 21st century. As Summers concluded: "Let's celebrate nurses every day by making the only change that will ensure nurses are there when we need them: Let's reconsider the value of what nurses do." We thank the Baltimore Sun. see the full op-ed...
Joy Cardin interviews Sandy Summers about Saving Lives
May 7, 2009 -- Wisconsin National Public Radio host Joy Cardin did a one hour interview with the Truth's executive director Sandy Summers about our book Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayals of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk. listen to the show in Real Player...
Nursing Standard reviews Saving Lives
April 29, 2009 -- "Every nurse should recognise the damage that negative portrayals of nursing in the press, films, television and even books can do to our image. ... This well-researched text explores the negative effects of adverse publicity and how it inhibits our professional growth. ... The book deserves wide reading. Hopefully some firebrand may even be driven to duplicate this study in the UK."
--Dame Betty Kershaw, Nursing Standard (UK)
"The first nurse who saved my son's life": Newsweek reviews Saving Lives
March 9, 2009 -- This week's Newsweek includes an excellent "Health Matters" article by senior editor Jerry Adler headlined "The Nurse Will See You Now." Adler's focus is how the care his son received for years after his birth with a malformed jaw, which included more than 40 significant surgeries, showed Adler how critical nurses are to health care. Adler writes that "over the years we saw firsthand the truth behind a new book, Saving Lives, by Sandy Summers and Harry Jacobs Summers: that nurses, in fact, perform much of the direct patient care that the media, especially hospital shows on television, routinely attribute to the much more glamorous profession of doctor." Adler notes that many collaborative professions do not receive their due from the popular media, "[b]ut Saving Lives has a serious point, that the devaluation of nursing--both by overlooking nurses' contributions to positive outcomes for patients, and more subtly by emphasizing their devotion, compassion and self-sacrifice over their lifesaving skills--discourages students from the field and contributes to a critical nursing shortage." Adler even "tests" and confirms our thesis with an examination of the physician-centric anthology of interesting cases in surgeon Sherwin Nuland's The Soul of Medicine. Adler closes with a "small tribute to the nurses who kept my son alive for so long" in the recovery room, ICU, and pediatric floor after his many surgeries, most at the Institute of Reconstructive Plastic Surgery at New York University (we might add that OR nurses kept his son alive during the surgeries). We thank Adler for his perceptive and heartfelt article. see the article...
March 4, 2009 -- Saving Lives authors Sandy and Harry Summers appeared on Sirius and XM Satellite Radio's "Doctor Radio" channel on Tuesday, March 10, from 6 am - 7 am. They were on the Pulmonology show hosted by Dr. Frank Adams, a pulmonologist at NYU Langone Medical Center, to talk about nursing's media image and how if affects health care. The station was Sirius (Ch. 114), XM (Ch. 119), and on the web at www.sirius.com/doctorradio (click on "Listen Online"). The show is rebroadcast later in the week. Thank you for your support.
February 19, 2009 -- Glenna Murdock covered the Truth's work on Well-Sphere today.
Registered Nurses Association of Ontario Journal
January - Febrary 2009 -- "Say No to Naughty Nurse Image," in the Registered Nurse Journal a gives an in-depth look at negative images of nursing in the media and what we can do about them. Truth's executive director Sandy Summers is quoted in the article. The Registered Nurse Journal is the journal of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario. see an abstract...
"Ethics Education, Television, and Invisible Nurses"
December 1, 2008 -- Today the Journal of Bioethics pulibshed an article written jointly by the Truth's executive director Sandy Summers and Frances Rieth Ward, Assistant Professor of the
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Nursing. see the article...
September 19, 2008 -- AARP Bulletin Today article "Where's My Nurse?: How the Nursing Shortage Could Hurt Your Care" by Katharine Greider. Truth's executive director Sandy Summers is quoted in the article: "The angel image allows decision makers to ignore nurses' workplace conditions,' says Sandy Summers, ... "because angels can take error-free care of 20 patients on a mandatory 16-hour shift, and they won't even have to stop for a bathroom break. Angels live in heaven, so they don't need good salaries to pay the rent. But real nurses need workplace support to foster their lifesaving skills--and they're not getting that support now.” see the article...
Fall 2008 -- Glenna Murdock covers our work in an article entitled "The Center for Nursing Advocacy Urges Hollywood to Tell it Like it Is."
Nursezone on television portrayals of nurses
August 2008 -- Glenna Murdock wrote "Television Portrayals of Nurses are Damaging the Profession" for NurseZone and the article is published on NurseConnect.com. The article quotes Truth's Sandy Summers: "The programs show the physicians hiring, firing and supervising nurses. That is what makes people think we're handmaidens. When physicians behave in this way, the public is prevented from knowing that nursing is an autonomous profession with its own scope of practice, its own code of ethics and its own licensing exams and boards of nursing. Nurses are often made to look like they can't and don't have the knowledge and skills to save lives." see the article...
MSNBC: "Medical TV isn't always right"
September 20, 2007 -- Today MSNBC reprinted a Forbes article by Allison Van Dusen, "Playing doctor: Medical TV isn't always right: Viewers often get wrong ideas, but shows do impart some info, experts say." The article discussed popular health-related dramas and their accuracy. Truth's executive director Sandy Summers was quotes about television's failure to portray nursing accurately. Summers' comments included the often overlooked argument that nurse characters tend to absorb abuse from physicians like House with no apparent ability to respond, reinforcing the image of nurses as meek servants--an unusual point for the mainstream media to put forward. We thank Allison Van Dusen for this article. see the article...
Nurses in Motion: "Fighting De-Nursification"
July 18, 2007 -- "Nurses in Motion," and internet video series with host Barbara Ficarra featured an interview with Truth's executive director Sandy Summers who discussed the effects poor public understanding of nursing has on the global nursing shortage. watch the video...
May 30, 2007 -- KGO radio in San Francisco, which covers a large part of the Western U.S., hosted a segment on the nursing shortage. The show invited Sandy Summers to discuss causes of and solutions to the shortage at about 6:45 am PDT.
"An image problem, from TV to silver screen"
May 6, 2007 -- Bob Groves from the New Jersey Bergen Record, published an excellent article "An image problem, from TV to silver screen" about nursing portrayals in the media. The article featured many positive quotes from Sandy Summers. See the article...
Shock Trauma nurses honored for clinical hotness!
April 25, 2007 -- Today's Baltimore Sun featured a column by Laura Vozzella about a poll taken by Baltimore City firefighters on thewatchdesk.com that asked which local hospital had the "hottest" nurses. Vozzella's bemused piece suggests that this is a curious way for at least 146 responding firefighters to be spending their time, given that the department has recently been criticized for a fatal training exercise and that unions are calling for its chief to resign. But she also explains why nurses might have a problem with the poll's implied suggestion that they are all about sexiness, relying heavily on comment from Sandy Summers. We thank Laura Vozzella for the column. more...
March 13, 2007 -- Today The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, PA) ran a good piece by reporter Pat Carroll about the damaging misportrayal of nursing on Fox's "House" and other popular U.S. television shows. The article "Doctored reality: Nurses chart complaints of marginalization on TV" focuses on the common Hollywood depiction of a "pack of doctors engaging in patient care with no nurses in sight." The piece gets expert comment from several Pennsylvania nurses, and also relies on extensive input from the Truth's executive director Sandy Summers. more...
March 5, 2007 -- Check out a good article in today's Salem News (MA) about the flawed depiction of health care on popular U.S. television shows like ABC's "Grey's Anatomy." Julie Kirkwood's piece focuses on nurses' arguments that such shows can distort the public's view of health care and health workers, with negative effects on the real world. The story aims to debunk some of the key "myths" such shows present, and it includes extensive comment from Truth's executive director Sandy Summers about how the shows undervalue nursing care. The piece is "As seen on TV: Real-life health care workers say medical shows aren't telling the real story."
The Star-Ledger: "Nurses urge TV dramas: Get real"
January 28, 2007 -- On January 11, the New Jersey Star-Ledger published an excellent piece by Carol Ann Campbell on Hollywood's treatment of nursing. The article is headlined "Nurses urge TV dramas: Get real; Portrayals deceive public, groups say." The substantial piece features extensive comment from nurses (including Truth's executive director Sandy Summers) who explain how popular U.S. television dramas regularly show physicians doing important work that nurses really do, while nurses are shown as peripheral subordinates, when they appear at all. As the piece notes, this widespread undervaluation is a factor in the critical nursing shortage. We thank Ms. Campbell and the Star-Ledger for this piece, which stands in stark contrast to a slew of recent articles in the major print media that explore Hollywood's "medical accuracy" but completely ignore nursing. more...
The piece was reprinted in the Birmingham News on January 15, 2007.
May 2, 2007 -- Our campaign to convince the Heart Attack Grill in Tempe, Arizona, to discontinue its use of "naughty nurse" waitress uniforms has received international press coverage.
CNN's Headline News covered the story on Nov. 9. The CNN piece was a rebroadcast of the story done on the ABC News 15 (Phoenix), which ran on October 27, 2006. See the CNN clip in Quicktime hi-band or low-band and Windows media hi-band or low-band. Also see the East Valley Tribune (Arizona) article on this issue by Nicole Beyer entitled "Pretend nurses in skimpy outfits raise ire."
On Dec. 8, 2006, an Associated Press story by Amanda Lee Myers was printed in countless newspapers across the globe including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Times of India, the Taipei Times and Canada.com.
The story was covered on the ABC News television show 20/20 with John Stossel on November 17, 2006 (article or film clip).
It was covered on Geraldo-at-Large on December 18, 2006. See the clip in Quicktime (broadband or dial-up); or Windows Media Player (broadband or dial-up).
The Baltimore Sun covered the article Nov. 16, 2006. Versions of the Baltimore Sun story have also run in major newspapers nationwide, including Dallas-Fort Worth's Star Telegram and Bloomington, Indiana's Herald Times on Nov. 18, 2006; the Miami Herald, the Olympian (Washington state) and the Knoxville News Sentinel on Nov. 19; the Raleigh, Durham & Chapel Hill News & Observer on Nov. 20; the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Sun News, the Tacoma, Washington News Tribune and the Nashua (New Hampshire) Telegraph on Nov. 23; and the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune on Nov. 24, 2006.
NBC 12 (Phoenix) News covered the story on Oct. 30, 2006 in the piece "Scantily-clad waitresses in Tempe raise concerns" by Syleste Rodriguez, or in footage: Quicktime high or low; Windows Media high or low.
The Truth's executive director was featured on the Chip Franklin show on WBAL radio (Baltimore) Nov. 16, 2006. KFYI news radio had Sandy Summers, the Truth's executive director as a guest on the Joe Crummy show for an hour on Dec. 11, 2006. She also appeared on a KIRO talk radio news show in Seattle on Dec. 8, 2006 for 30 minutes. The Free-Market News Network covered the story on Nov. 13, 2006. It was covered by the Arizona Republic on Nov. 30, 2006.
The Arizona State University Web Devil covered the story on March 8, 2007. The Washington Times reported on it on May 2, 2007.
"Close to Home" comic press coverage
December 19, 2006 -- Charles Fiegl of the Glens Falls Post-Star (NY) covered our reaction to the "Close to Home" comic which featured "hot" nurses. See the article. It was reprinted in the Universal Press Syndicate, also covered in Editor & Publisher on Dec. 19 and on WSYR Channel 9, ABC affiliate in Syracuse.
December 5, 2006 -- The Island Packet in Hilton Head, South Carolina, featured quotes from Truth's director Sandy Summers in an article on the professionalism of nursing uniforms. It was also reprinted in South Carolina's main paper The State.
December 8, 2006 -- Today The Baltimore Sun published "Nurses' achievements merit international recognition," an op-ed by Columbia University nursing professor Kristine Gebbie and Sandy Summers. The op-ed argues that nurses deserve a Nobel Prize or comparable annual award because their leaders have long been at the forefront of health research and clinical practice. They have changed the world by reinventing health systems, pioneering new therapies, and improving community health, from AIDS treatment to neonatal care to pain management. Establishing such a prize would shine a light on the profession's life-saving achievements. It would also help show how important it is that nursing get the clinical and educational resources it needs to overcome the global nursing shortage. The publication of this piece is the culmination of significant effort by the Sandy and Harry Summers. We thank The Baltimore Sun for its openness to new ideas on nursing, and its commitment to publishing the op-ed. And we urge you to read it, think about it, and show it to others. Thank you! See the op-ed.
Jack White and White Stripes coverage
May 3, 2006 -- Today The Los Angeles Times covered the exchange of mock awards between Sandy Summers and Jack White, of the band White Stripes, with the piece "A Stripe nursing a grudge?" The Detroit Metro Times wrote about it in "Nursing a grudge," on May 3. And Salon covered it on April 26 with "Jack White in slap fight with nurses."
Advance for Nurses: "The Image of Nursing"
April 24, 2006 -- Sandy Keefe, RN, MSN, did a very good article on media images of nursing in this week's edition of Advance for Nurses. The piece relied heavily on Truth executive director Sandy Summers. Summers expressed concern about the handmaiden portrayals (and non-portrayals) of nurses that dominate current U.S. television programming, as well as the continuing prevalence of unskilled angel images, which can infect even the messages of those trying to help nursing. See the article...
The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing editorial
September/October 2005 -- The editor of the American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, Margaret Comerford Freda, EdD, RN, CHES, FAAN, wrote a flattering editorial about Sandy Summers' work entitled "Another Hero for All of Us." See the editorial...
Medical students attack nurses
July 14, 2005 -- The Edmonton Journal did an article on the controversy surrounding the University of Alberta's Medshow where medical students sang the "Nurses' Song" that featured nurses as "whores" and "bitches" whose "incompetence" threatened to "make our patients die," but that they were qualified to "fill up my coffeepot" and "give good head." The refrain urged nurses to "show me those boobs." Click here to see the article.
April 2005 -- Journal of Neuroscience Nursing editor Chris Stewart-Amidei did her monthly editorial on nursing media images, why they matter and how nurses can work together to change the coverage. Sandy Summers' influence was prominently featured. Click here to see the article.
Women's eNews commentator highlights nursing shortage...in the media
March 30, 2005 -- Today the Women's eNews web site posted a very good commentary by Sheila Gibbons about the low visibility of nurses' work in the media, apart from stories about the nursing shortage. The piece explains why the news and entertainment media's treatment of nurses matters, and suggests that more attention to nurses' real contributions is a key part of overcoming the current nursing crisis. more...
Nurses and the Media: The Center for Nursing Advocacy
March 16, 2006 -- Richard S. Ferri, PhD, ANP, ACRN, FAAN, covered our work today with a Medscape interview with our executive director Sandy Summers. see the full interview...
Johns Hopkins Magazine covers Sandy Summers' work
February 2005 -- Johns Hopkins Magazine, which covers its University events, ran an alumni news story on our work. See the article in html or pdf.
Skechers campaign coverage receives worldwide coverage
October 12, 2004 -- There has been a sudden worldwide resurgence in the past week of media coverage of nurses' successful campaign to persuade Skechers to end their use of the Christina Aguilera nurse ad. We are aware of new coverage of the campaign in media outlets from the following nations: United States (including MSNBC, The New York Post, and the Kidd Kraddick syndicated radio show); the United Kingdom (including the BBC and the Sun); Ireland; Germany; [other European], and Mexico. Most of these pieces feature a brief statement of Summers' objections to the ad, often including a quote from Sandy Summers noting that the ad embodied both the naughty nurse and battleaxe stereotypes that have long held the profession back. See our full news coverage on our Skechers campaign.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: "Nursing advocate bringing message of profession's value here."
October 12, 2004 -- Health editor Virginia Linn profiles the work of Sandy and Harry Summers and outlines some basic aspects of their work, with a focus on recent campaigns protesting harmful media images such as the Skechers Christina Aguilera ad and a "Jeopardy!" question that "hit nurses like a wet snowball in the face." more...
Nurseweek interviews Sandy Summers
September 20, 2004 -- Bree LeMaire, RN, MS, interviewed the Truth's executive director in a piece entitled "5 Minutes with Sandy Summers" in this week's issue of Nurseweek. see the article
Nursezone profiles work of Sandy and Harry Summers
June 2004 -- Nursezone writer Debra Wood covered the work of Sandy and Harry Summers featured on Nursezone's news pages. see the article
AJN editorial urges support for Summers' work
May 2004 -- In the main editorial in this month's American Journal of Nursing, nursing leaders Claire Fagin, PhD, RN, FAAN, Pam Maraldo, PhD, RN, FAAN and AJN editor-in-chief Diana Mason, PhD, RN, FAAN called on readers to celebrate Nurses Week by supporting the work of Sandy and Harry Summers, who were then at the Center for Nursing Advocacy. The editorial explained in detail how Nurses of America, a project spearheaded by Drs. Fagin and Maraldo in the late 1980's and early 1990's, pursued diverse strategies to improve media coverage of nurses and had a real impact on public understanding of the profession. The editorial argued that nurses today, in the midst of a shortage that has become a "major public health crisis," must likewise "sustain a collective effort to shape media portrayals of nursing." see the editorial
"Passions" soap opera campaign media coverage
February 7, 2004 -- Sandy and Harry Summers' campaign, who were then at the Center for Nursing Advocacy, have received press coverage on their campaign to end the use of the monkey nurse on the soap opera "Passions." The story was covered in the TV Guide in February 2004 and December 2003, and in the New York Post in December 2003.
February 7, 2004 -- This week's TV Guide includes a special box below Michael Logan's "On Soaps" column about the efforts of NBC's soap "Passions" to have BamBam, the orangutan who plays Nurse Precious, be considered for a daytime Emmy award. The box also mentions Sandy and Harry Summers' campaign protesting the show's degrading vision of nursing--wrongly claiming that we had "blasted" BamBam himself, rather than the producers--and has a quote from "Passions" creator James E. Reilly (above) that beautifully captures the show's attitude toward nurses and monkeys alike. more...
TV Guide covers Nurse Precious campaignDecember 26, 2003 -- TV Guide's online "Soapsnews" column, written by Delaina Dixon, this week included a "daytime tidbit" about the campaign protesting the use of an orangutan to play Nurse Precious on the NBC soap opera "Passions." This tidbit read in its entirety: "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has paired with the Center for Nursing Advocacy in its ongoing campaign to get Precious the orangutan removed from Passions." more...
New York Post reports on Center's "Nurse Precious" campaignDecember 18, 2003 -- Today the New York Post ran a brief item by Michael Starr about letter-writing campaigns by Summers and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) protesting the use of an orangutan to play a private duty nurse on NBC's soap opera "Passions." more...
American Journal of Nursing publishes the Center's "Viewpoint"
February 2004 -- The American Journal of Nursing published an op-ed on our "ER" campaign in this month's issue. The piece was written by Truth's executive director Sandy Summers and senior advisor Harry Jacobs Summers. see the op-ed
New York State Nurses Association profile
February 2004 -- Diane Pineiro-Zucker, the Assistant Director of Communications & Public Relations for the New York State Nurses Association profiled the work of Sandy and Harry Summers for the February edition of the NYSNA monthly report. see the profile
"ER" Campaign receives international press coverage
February 2004 -- Sandy and Harry Summers' campaign to convince "ER" to portray nurses more accurately has sparked press coverage around the world. A Washington Post article sparked much of the press coverage. It was also covered by Agence France Presse, in Italy, the UK, Canada, Australia, Spain and many others. Our full "ER" press coverage is below.
Center's "ER" campaign earns extensive press coverage in print and broadcast outlets
December 30, 2003 -- Following the Center's distribution of a press release on November 10, numerous print and broadcast outlets have covered our campaign to persuade the NBC show "ER" to portray nursing more fairly. click here for updates ...
December 16, 2003 -- This week's issue of the Hollywood tabloid "Star" ("NOBODY KNOWS THE STARS LIKE THE STAR!") has a brief, somewhat ambiguous item about the Center's "ER" campaign in its "It's been a good week for...It's been a bad week for..." feature. more...
Agence France Presse reports on Center's "ER" campaign
December 04, 2003 -- Today the Agence France Presse reported on the Center's campaign to convince ER to portray nursing more accurately. more...
"ER" campaign hits Italian press
December 1, 2003 -- Today Italy's TV Sorrisi e Canzoni ran a piece by Antonio Mustara about issues facing "ER" in its tenth season, including the Center's campaign to persuade the show's producers to portray nursing more accurately. more...
Chicago Tribune: "'ER' nurses 'handmaidens?'"
November 30, 2003 -- Today the Chicago Tribune ran a short but very fair article by its television reporter Allan Johnson about the Center's "ER" campaign. more...
British Medical Journal highlights "ER" campaign
November 29, 2003 -- This week's issue of the British Medical Journal has a substantial article by Jeanne Lenzer about the "ER" campaign. more...
Spanish-speaking nations' press covers Summers' "Urgencias" campaign
November 25, 2003 -- The "ER" campaign has been the subject of recent articles in prominent newspapers in Spanish-speaking nations, specifically Spain's El Mundo and Venezuela's Clarín. more...
November 25, 2003 -- Today the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ran an abridged version of Sandra Boodman's November 18 Washington Post article about the Center's "ER" campaign and a huge sidebar with excerpts from some of the Center's movie and television reviews. more...
Globe and Mail covers "ER" protests by Canadian blindness group and the Center
November 22, 2003 -- Today Canada's Globe and Mail ran an article by Guy Dixon that was primarily about the Canadian Institute for the Blind's protest of the November 13 "ER" episode, but that also reported on Sandy Summers' campaign about the show's portrayal of nursing. more...
Sydney Morning Herald reports on Sandy Summers' "ER" campaign, situation for Australian nurses
November 20, 2003 -- Today's Sydney Morning Herald carried a piece by David Dale, "Maybe it's something about the uniform...," which discussed the campaign to persuade "ER" to portray nurses accurately and the extent to which Australian nurses confront poor images in the media. more...
HealthDay summary on "ER" campaign appears on many health information sites in U.S. and Switzerland
November 20, 2003 -- A summary created by the widely distributed HealthDay news service about the November 18 Washington Post story on the "ER" campaign has appeared on many health information web sites, including the U. S. government's Healthfinder site, numerous U.S. press sites, and the Swiss Health on the Net Foundation site. more...
Roanoke Times editorial misstates basis of "ER" campaign, then attacks it
November 19, 2003 -- Today the Roanoke Times dismissed the Center's campaign to persuade "ER" to portray nursing more fairly in an editorial that appeared to be based on a misunderstanding of the previous day's Washington Post article about the campaign. more....
Washington Post highlights Center's "ER" campaign
November 18, 2003 -- Today's Washington Post ran a lengthy, very good piece by Sandra G. Boodman, "Nursing a Lousy Image--RNs Blame Crisis on TV's 'ER,'" as one of the lead articles on the front page of its weekly Health section. more...
Pasadena Star News: Summers' "ER" campaign and new California staffing law
November 17, 2003 -- Today the Pasadena Star News published a good article by Michelle Rester, "Nurses want more accurate portrayal on 'ER' TV show," which reports on the Summers' letter-writing campaign and related efforts by a Pasadena nurse to improve the profession. more...
New Zealand Nursing Review profiles Summers' work
September 2003 -- Fiona Cassie's long profile of the Sandy Summers' work for the New Zealand Nursing Review appeared this month. more...
Nursing Spectrum profiles Summers
August 11, 2003 -- Today's issue of Nursing Spectrum featured a lengthy article about the work by Sandy and Harry Summers to improve the image of nursing. See the article.
Sandy Summers appears live on WBAI radio's award-winning "Health Styles"
August 1, 2003 -- Sandy Summers discussed the media advocacy today on New York City radio station WBAI's Health Styles program, hosted by American Journal of Nursing editor Diana Mason, R.N., Ph.D., FAAN. more...
American Journal of Nursing profiles Summers' work
May 2003 -- This month's issue of the American Journal of Nursing, the official journal of the American Nurses Association, includes a full-page profile of Sandy Summers work to improve the media's treatment of nurses. more...
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