In today's day and age and how easy it is to access personal information about someone, this is a necessity.  If a patient has access to the nurse's first and last name (if it's somewhat unique) they are able to know almost everything about him/her within five minutes simply by using a free search engine. This puts the nurse at risk for stalking, physical harm, and slander.  Patients are protected in so many ways and nurses are often left vulnerable and exposed.  This is necessary!