Comments made on a popular talk show about a Miss America contestant have nurses and their supporters fired up across the country.
"Every nurse has a patient that reminds them why they became a nurse in the first place," said Miss America 2016 contestant Kelley Johnson.
For the talent portion of this year's Miss America pageant, Miss Colorado traded in a costume for a uniform.
"They're not just doing the regular song and dance in bikinis, they're putting on a slouchy outfit and saying I take care of people all day long," said Lisa Curtin, a nursing student.
"I think it's stellar. I think she's a true rockstar because of it. I think that talents are more than performance and some of the really important ones are behind closed doors, or in our case, curtains," added another nursing student, Karissa Matis.
During her performance, nurse Kelley Johnson, 22, delivered a monologue about her most memorable patient.
"Joe was in the beginning stages of Alzheimer's," Johnson said.
The disease is just one of the many heartbreaking illnesses medical professionals face each day, something local nursing students in Troy are prepping for.
"I've been told to expect to cry at work at least twice in the first year and probably weekly outside of work," Matis explained.
While Johnson's speech concluded to thunderous applause from the audience, it received a different reaction when discussed on a popular talk show. Comments made by The View co-hosts, Joy Behar and Michelle Collins, were seen by many as disrespectful and belittling.
"Why does she have a doctor's stethoscope on?" Behar said.
"I feel like it's not a doctor's or a nurse's stethoscope, it's a stethoscope. Everyone in the health care team needs to use it," Curtin explained.
Thousands of supporters have taken to social media to support Johnson, using #NursesUnite.
"Out of all the professions to bash, it shouldn't have been nursing. They picked the wrong profession to go against," said Curtin.
"When you have a group of really well educated, strong, sassy ladies and gentleman, it's a force to reckon with," said Matis.
The hosts have since apologized and Friday invited members of the New York University College of Nursing on the show to talk about the hard work nurses do each day.