The client's right to know versus the nurse's right to be protected from harm

The other day, several nurses on our medical-surgical unit got into a heated debate about staff identification. One nurse was upset that her uncle who had been a patient in another hospital had not been able to find out the names of the nurses who cared for him. Her uncle wanted to write the hospital about concerns he had on the nursing care he received and was very frustrated because the hospital wouldn't tell him the names of the nurses. Some of us said the hospital was right, employers have to protect nurses from harm and should not release the names.