ONA Gets No Deal: Letter Sent to NBC& Deal or No Deal Producers

The ONA (Ontario Nurses' Association) has not recieved a public apology from NBC or the producers of the hit television game show Deal or No Deal.  A letter was sent by ONA and it's president Linda Haslam-Stroud for portraying nurses in an unfitting manner.  The original episode aired on October 22nd 2008 and was supposed to be a nurse-themed episode to pay hommage to the career of that night's contestant.  Unfortunately the producers decided to sexualize the models as "Naughty Nurses" showcasing them in scantily clad uniforms.  This "sterotypical" image was not taken lightly by ONA.  My wife who is a registered nurse had no comment on the premise of the episodes theme. My wife is aware and has experienced many occasions of sexually charged remarks and suggestions in the past.  The choice of NBC to show nurses as sexual fantasy images may only make matters worse. I personally had not seen this episode, nor had my wife, however many members of ONA felt degraded and insulted.  The nursing profession is one that trys to uphold high standards of care and by portraying nurses as sexual causes further elevated stress levels in an already high-stressed enviroment.  ONA joined with many other nursing associations to ask that this episode not be replayed in the future and to portray nurses in future episodes in a respectful way that does not undermine the nursing profession.  To date the letter ONA sent toNBC and the producers of Deal or No Deal  has gone unanswered.