Kentucky Nurses Foundation

You probably know a nurse or two, may have nurses in your family or friend group, and hopefully have had positive experiences of nursing care.  As we have heard many, many times (and year after year in the United States), nurses are the most trusted profession (2022 Gallup Poll, Inc.).  But do you really know what we do? 

The truth is caring for our patients is extremely important, of course.  But what we are doing in the act of “caring” is deeper and often more technical than the public may realize. 

• When the dialysis nurse discusses diet and what is going on at home with the kidney dialysis patient, it may sound like simply making conversation, but they are actually trying to assure the patient has what is needed, is knowledgeable about how to eat and drink to prevent fluid overload, and can avoid serious complications such as falls in the home or food and medication interactions.
• When the school nurse interacts with a student, he or she may seem to be just acting pleasant but may be able to identify potential serious problems such as food insecurity in the home, depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues, even situations of abuse.      

Today’s Kentucky nurses are leaders, researchers, innovators, educators, administrators, and of course, clinical practitioners.  We do our jobs in scrubs, lab coats, military uniforms, or even business suits.  We are proud to speak up and advocate for ourselves and our patients, and to work diligently every day to not only care for our Kentucky communities in the traditional ways, but also to improve health, equity, and justice in our healthcare organizations and throughout the Commonwealth.      

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The Kentucky Nurses Foundation (KNF) is the philanthropic division of the Kentucky Nurses Association (KNA) -- the only full-service professional organization representing the needs of 90,000 nurses across Kentucky.