41 yr old male wanting to start a 2nd career in nursing?

Nurses Men

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I've always wanted to be in the health care field. I went back to school in my mid twenties but chose chemistry over nursing, and now I work at a consulting engineering firm as a project manager but I feel my tenure in the engineering world is at an end, and that its time for a career change. I guess I want to know how old is to old to enter nursing as a man? What was the demographic in the class room? How are job opportunities in Canada (I'm in Vancouver). Do men do this as a second career or am I thinking crazy? Any and all insights are much appreciated.

SJ

43 ha! I'm 50 and graduating in December. You can do anything if u put your mind to it. I'm also in Florida. Best of luck to you!

You got me beat, but not by much. I'm 50 next week. Still not clear how THAT happened!?

PS. I like your "Minion" avatar.

SJ (OP) Although I haven't made it through the program yet, I hoped my advanced age would give you hope!

-Tom

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Specializes in Hospice, corrections, psychiatry, rehab, LTC.

I turned 40 about three weeks after I finished school. It can definitely be done. Good luck.

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I am 35 yrs old man wants to enter in the health field, but i have a problem i am a fresh immigrant from Bhutan. I have a keen interest to become a health worker since my childhood but i can't reach to that point being a refugee. When i entered in America i plan to start my dream career but i lost some where on the path. From where i can start now and how? So, i need your help, plz can you?

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Specializes in Hospice, corrections, psychiatry, rehab, LTC.

I was in my late 30s when I made the decision to go to school, turned 40 about three weeks after I finished school. I went to a community college, and the median age in my class was probably about 35. I had two classmates who were in their late 50s when they finished.

Your age is far less important than your focus, your ability and your dedication to the profession.

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I am beginning a BSN program exactly one week before my 50th birthday. How's that for celebrating the half-century mark?

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I will turn 44 next month and I am starting nursing school in two weeks. Go for it.

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go for it i have a friend who just graduated with their rn and they are 55!

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Don't do it! Don't do it! Nursing is the MOST abusive profession. There is a saying in nursing that "nurses eat their own young". I know this from first hand experience. People look at male nurses as if they are not natural to this profession. New nurses are the most abused in the workforce, especially but other new nurses. Nurses hate mentoring new nurses into the profession. They want nurses to start working as if they have years of experience already in the precise field they have just started working in and do not hesitate to express daily annoyance at your slowness at your new job. Nurse managers who are working full time at a particular unit for decades that you have the misfortune of sharing a shift in will display all of the classic signs of territorial bullying. They will let you know that the unit is their turf and they want things done their way. They won't show their cruelty overtly-women are geniuses are being covertly mean.

I had a nurse manager tell me to insert a catheter into a patient and when I couldn't find any documentation confirming the order she insisted the person needed it. After getting help from another nurse we erroneously gave the poor patient a new catheter after unfortunately figuring out that it was changed before it's scheduled date as per physician's order all because the nurse manager boasted her authority. That same nurse manager also decided to break guidelines and possibly the law by outright saying to a new nurse, "I just gave report to the PSWs. I'm not going to repeat myself". She refused to give that new nurse a transfer of accountability report. Good for the new nurse for standing up for himself and heading straight for the director of care's office to complain after trying to reason the need for a report with the nurse manager. Soon after the director of care came of the office hooking the nurse manager with her finger with a stern expression to get into her office immediately.

I have witnessed another male nurse who was recently hired in a long term care facility I was working in being in the exact same position I was three months ago when I started working. Nurses and personal support workers (aka health care aids) giggled and mocked him for administering medication to over 35 residents in two hours. Administering medication to 35 residents when your workload in academic training (which includes clinical placements) are always far less than what you are actually expected to do in the real world, especially if you're background clinical placements are in hospitals where your case load is only 5-6 patients at most. How do you adjust to handling medication administration for 35 clients or even 60 clients if you are brand new to long term care? But not being able to catch up by your third day in speed and accuracy in your performance instantly puts you in bad light and the nurses will make sure you know it and they love making you feel like an idiot for missing any kind of detail about a patient.

Nursing is the profession of psychopathic women who can't control their temper. I had a nurse coworker scream at the top of her lungs at me because I already administered a medication to a patient that she would later look after later in the day even though I properly document my medication administration and followed protocol.

Nursing is not worth the frustration UNLESS you know EXACTLY WHY you want to be a nurse. Why do you want to become a nurse? If you can't answer that question with conviction and sincerity to yourself how can you answer that question to your boss or interviewer for your first job? Know the specific field of nursing you want to get yourself into or at least have had experience in a field closely related to your nursing career goals and have a plan on how to be successful in that field. Start thinking about your specialty now so you can begin your research. If you find it rewarding to care for people and you know you can help them optimize their own health and advocate for their right then you may just have some motivation to keep you in the profession but I warn you try other avenues first. Are you sure you don't want to try taking up art, painting, writing, construction, accounting or computer network security? Computer network security is a very promising field with 0% unemployment rate and high employment satisfaction.

Contact me if you want more information from my personal experiences of starting out as a new nurse. I have plenty. I find that there are some fields that men excel in nursing better than women and women aren't as good than men. Men I find are great in one on one intensive settings, and public health settings like sexual health clinics, addiction rehabilitation programs, and AIDS/HIV organizations. Such things women seem to have no patience for or seem to hate and it shows in how they care for clients in those settings. Ironically, contrary to the stereotype of the warm, nurturing, female, nurse, female nurses do not handle the psycho-social needs of clients in sexual health settings very well at all and have trouble handling the topic of sex with neutrality. Women tend to excel the high volume task work (although not rocket science) in long term care, whereas, men don't. In terms of training for nursing, some find the academic part challenging and I've said good-bye to a good friend or two for underestimating the challenge of nursing college. But academia is nothing compared to the real world of nursing.

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...Nursing is the profession of psychopathic women who can't control their temper...

Where's the popcorn smiley when you need it?

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Don't do it! Don't do it! Nursing is the MOST abusive profession. There is a saying in nursing that "nurses eat their own young". I know this from first hand experience. People look at male nurses as if they are not natural to this profession. New nurses are the most abused in the workforce, especially but other new nurses. Nurses hate mentoring new nurses into the profession. They want nurses to start working as if they have years of experience already in the precise field they have just started working in and do not hesitate to express daily annoyance at your slowness at your new job. Nurse managers who are working full time at a particular unit for decades that you have the misfortune of sharing a shift in will display all of the classic signs of territorial bullying. They will let you know that the unit is their turf and they want things done their way. They won't show their cruelty overtly-women are geniuses are being covertly mean.

.

Welcome to AN! The largest online nursing community.

There are good and bad in every profession. I am so sorry you have had such a negative experience. I have always found my experiences with nurses of the male gender rewarding and found them to be welcome members of the team. It sounds like you are in a toxic environment and that maybe you need to consider another position in another facility.

Sometimes we need to look at our selves in the mirror to see how we participate and contribute to how we are treated and events in our lives. Just see how much we bring onto ourselves.

You reap what you sow.....

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Welcome to AN! The largest online nursing community.

You reap what you sow.....

That's what you have to say to me? That's pretty cold.

Like I said nursing a cruel profession. See what I mean?

If you want to participate in health care Mr. 41 year old don't go into nursing. Try respiratory therapy, physiotherapy, psychotherapist or if don't have the time and money try their college assistant versions like respiratory therapist assistant, or physiotherapy assistant. People have more respect for those professionals than nurses or even try recreation therapist. There are MANY OTHER options besides nursing to participate in health care besides nursing. Ever thought of being a doctor instead?

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That's what you have to say to me? That's pretty cold.

Like I said nursing a cruel profession. See what I mean?

If you want to participate in health care Mr. 41 year old don't go into nursing. Try respiratory therapy, physiotherapy, psychotherapist or if don't have the time and money try their college assistant versions like respiratory therapist assistant, or physiotherapy assistant. People have more respect for those professionals than nurses or even try recreation therapist. There are MANY OTHER options besides nursing to participate in health care besides nursing. Ever thought of being a doctor instead?

Dude, you totally missed her/his point. The advice was pretty solid. It may be the institution, go to another. But it seems like you're very bitter and feel very strongly about it that you ignore everything else. My experiences are far and polar to yours. Not such as a new grad now, but my experiences have been great. I had awesome preceptors, supportive staff, had good floats etc. I know my weaknesses, ask for help, and if I don't feel like something is right I go reach out to my resources. I mean it's true, there's a lot of women in the field, there's politics but I go to work and take care of my patients and I'm good. What about going to one of the other units you suggested? Or a whole new institution that prioritizes education and staff development vs seniority and power that of a small community hospital/LTAC. If you're just tolerating the job for the pay and hate the environment of course it's gonna suck. Even where I'm at now, I'm taught that I am my best advocate as a professional. No one person is important enough to get hand held, I'm always thinkinf steps ahead in my career to satisfy my cravings of being successful whether it be an interdepartment transfer for more experience or grad school to move up.

There are pros and cons to every career,

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