gender as a qualification

Um, how about because men who (a) want to, and (b) are qualified to work in OB are (c) therefore entitled to do so?

Being able to function well in any given setting is a function of intelligence and personality, not gender. The best GYN I ever went to as a patient was a male. Saying you ought to have female plumbing before working in OB or L&D is like saying you shouldn't work in CCU unless you've had an MI.

Hi guys….

A) I’m male nurse.
B) The thing is also applied to doctors , if we have enough female doctors to work in OB or L&D then no need for male doctors.
Come on guys don’t go against nature

salmi: to carry your syllogism to its logical conclusion, you seem to be saying that only male nurses and male physicians should take care of male patients. Sorry, the numbers don't add up. There is no way that there are enough male RNs--or MDs, for that matter--in any given hospital to take care of all the male patients.

I note that your location is Oman. Would I be presumptous to wonder whether your objections are religious or cultural in nature?

And as to shared toilets, don't people of either gender usually use them alone? Of course, women always complain about men leaving the seat up!

When I was being induced with my 2nd child, the CRNA was a guy who I had worked closely with and even oriented to ICU years before. He'd had a black (or bizarre) sense of humor when we worked together or socialized, and had often made crass comments and off-color jokes to many female nurses; so I was a little hesitant thinking he'd be there during the birth. But there was meconium in the amniotic fluid and I was rather busy with delivering at the time, so I didn't object. HE WAS SO COOL! He explained to my husband what was happening, took a very modest and sensitive picture of my husband cutting the cord, and then took my baby and checked her vocal cords and made sure she was okay. If that particular guy could be as caring and professional as that, I have no problems with other guys being in OB or L&D. He did so much better than the residents in the teaching hospital when I'd had my first child.

And don't forget, in Ally McBeal they had a shared restroom.

As for the rest of the debate: I work L&D and we have male residents and male OB techs; frankly I welcome the mixed gender to provide a little diversity (did I say that?) in the workplace. We sometimes have patients who are of Middle Eastern descent who ask that no males care for them, and we are more than happy to honor that request, except under emergency situations of course.

Whoever is best qualified to do the job is who should be allowed to work there. Simple as that.

And Stargazer, LOVE your posts.

And in our staff lounge we only have 1 toilet for both sexes.

Salmi, this is for you: If you have been raised in a middle eastern culture where males and females are not respected in the same way as they are in a westernized culture, it is only natural for you to think the way you do about the "separation of men and women" in the nursing field. Now that you live in America, and you see how American life is, why do you choose to stay if you are so opposed to our lifestyle? Remember the saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." When Americans travel to countries of a different culture, we must adapt to that culture's way of life if we are to survive and be accepted there. When foreigners with beliefs different than the westernized world come into America, they too must adapt to our ways in order to survive. Commenting on our lifestyle in America is one thing, but condemning it to the point of things needing to be "your culture's way or no way" is not sound and mature reasoning on your part.
Instead of arguing about how this or that should be one way or another, why not share with us more about your culture and way of life, and why you are so adamant about life remaining the same for you when you no longer live in a country that supports that viewpoint. I am not condemning you, Salmi, but seeking to gain a better understanding of your viewpoints and why you choose to live in a country that is so different than the way you were raised to believe. Please....share more with us about this.