Leaders must act to prevent care apathy.

RCN general secretary Peter Carter is in no doubt that the overwhelming majority of today’s students start their courses with the right values. He says so from a position of strength, because he visits universities and meets cohorts of new recruits. He is also aware that students and newly qualifi ed nurses are more likely to blow the whistle on poor care than those who have witnessed it for years on end and have become blind to its existence.