Since proclamation of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, there has been growing public awareness that clients may access their own health records, which also contain the names of the staff caring for them. This and the public's expectation that health professionals are accountable and responsible for their practice have increased the public's demand to know the names of their caregivers. All clients have the right to know who their care providers are and to question the nursing care they receive. Nurses and agencies have a responsibility to assist clients access information and resolve concerns regarding their care. Nurses' Right to be Safe Increasingly, nurses and other health care personnel are concerned about being stalked, harmed or harassed by disgruntled clients.
All nurses have the right to be safe.
This means that health care agencies have to balance the interests of their clients and staff when they are asked to release names of nurses. However, they have additional responsibilities in relation to employees. Agencies are responsible for developing their own procedures for releasing the names of nurses that balance their responsibilities to clients and employees. Some agencies also establish staff identification and documentation policies and processes to resolve client concerns. Staff Identification Practices Staff identification includes everything from nametags to how nurses introduce themselves and how they sign entries in charts and other health care records.