Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

Science.

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

An interesting discussion. It seems to me, being relatively new (2 yrs) that initially I experienced no discrimination. However, what I have experienced is the female version of the "good ole' boy" club. I am TNCC, CATN II, PALS, NRP, ACLS, BLS (alphabet soup) valedictorian of my nursing class. Competent and well liked and respecterd by my peers and the doctors and MLP's that I work with (ER LVL 1 Trauma Ctr). So where do I see problems? Supervisors that are young and insecure in their leadership abilities ( I am retired Sr NCO US Army 22yrs) and who have stopped reading because once the graduated they became nurses (ever discuss using trendelenburg position or not, and why... with some of them...the research is there, you just have to read...) I have not been given the same opportunities as several females in my unit ( I am the only male on nights) who are new grads, with no experience or training in the same areas....It is discriminatory, but...the focus is patient care, not me... I am working on my BSN and have goals of a MSN. I love my job, and these people can't take it away from me. I am competent and proud to be competent and I keep up on literature and evidence based practice. Be professional, even if those around you can't. Good luck to everyone, and I know after 22 yrs of service with 12 yrs in combat zones....I am finally in my true vocation.

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

Well yes there is quite a bit of discrimination against males in the nursing profession. Firstly, you're immediately stuck with a gay label upon entry, unless of course you're married, although with gay marriage here in Canada, that won't be any protection from the stereotype soon either.

I have myself experienced discrimination in employment because of my genitalia, as I am sure many of us have without being aware of it. For example, with one agency in western Canada, I was told nurses were burning out from routinely doing 60 hour weeks. I was asked the minimum number of hours that I could survive on upon applying, and responded 30. 30 hours was far more than the agency could provide a "male nurse".

Even ONA, my nursing union, provides no protection for males in nursing. It lists minorities, persons with disabilities, homosexuals and lesbians as well as women, but says nothing about protection for men in its list of protected groups. I wrote ONA about this and was told that ONA protects all its members, BUT, men could be discriminated in areas where intimate contact might be necessary with female patients, including hospital and nursing home environments.

So yes, men are discriminated in nursing - it's not opinion, it's fact. I have spoken to a number of others "male nurses" who feel the same - that they are given the worst assignments, sneered at and given fewer hours than their female colleagues. A number of these same male nurses later left nursing to pursue careers in truck driving and construction, wherein they could make better money, have less headaches and needed far less training to perform their jobs.

The really sad thing about it though, is that its all swept under the table and ignored. This would not be happening if the roles were reversed i.e. women in policing - where strict penalties await male officers who step out of line, where women are encouraged to applied, often hired through quotas and promoted on quotas as well. I'm not proposing a quota system for men in nursing, but a little better treatment for men in nursing would be appreciated.

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

I myself am a very patient man, you have to be to be a male nurse. I never was really sexist or racist. I would like to think that i have a very calm rational way of thinking.

And yet as a male nurse, i can tell you that males are discrimintated against in the nursing workforce.

The first job I had was in a mental health care facility. During the first day, i met a few female members of the staff. I said introduced myself and went about my duties, not without hearing them call me a *@#!%# after i had stepped around the corner. Now here I was, introducing myself and being polite to these people who don't even know who I am, and assumed that I am something that I am not. I didn't work there very long.

I know a doctor who is a partner in a Family practice, with offices in a several towns, call me up and personally recommended me for a job in his practice "not in the division that he primarily works in though". I sent in my resume and waited. No response. Now granted, the decision to hire is not entirely in his hands, so i dismissed it. A year later, he calls me up personally and recommends me for a job in his practice, at his own division. I quickly updated my resume and personally delivered it. I didn't even receive a phone call. I was really annoyed with it, until a former employee told me that that practice simply does not hire male nurses. I was furious and very upset.

I have also on several occasions mailed off resumes for a few jobs, and have had a female LPN friend of mine(who is less experienced) mail her resume off too. Take a wild guess as to which one of us would get the callbacks. Long story short, she definitely is the one with the job security

Now, I love nursing and l love helping people. I hope I never get out of this field, but the discrimination makes it very difficult sometimes

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

As a only male nursing student in a class of 40 (level II), I definitely agree with the hyper-visibility that article mentions. There is a lot of stuff that my female classmates get away with that I would get crucified for if I did the same.
Example; In my clinical group last semester: One morning a female classmate's alarm didn't go off and she was half an hour late for clinicals - the instructor let it ride and didn't bat an eyelash. The next week another classmate showed up an hour late for some reason or another - again, same reaction from the instructor, "Oh it's alright don't worry about it I'm just glad you could make it!". The next morning my car wouldn't start and I had to catch a ride and arrived 15 minutes late. The instructor got an attitude and I was told to not let it happen again because lateness would not be tolerated, period. I agree that it's not acceptable to be late, but I definitely felt the sting of "hyper-visibility".
I could name a lot more examples but I'll let it rest at that.
Or the constant, "(insert situation/problem here) because you're a guy, I'm sure I'll have more luck since I am a female" I get from my classmates.
I just try to let the constant barrage of stereotypical male jokes the (female)professor tells in lecture roll off my back.

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

I have worked with many male nurses over the years and love it. Most of the ones I have worked with got their work done on time and didn't mind pitching in and helping their coworkers when needed. I work LTC and have found that often their brawn is needed at times with confused/combative or just very obese residents.
I can't count the times that I've been helped with a combative resident and it's the male nurses have saved the resident (and myself) from possible injuries, unnecessary incident reports, etc. I applaud you for taking on the job that you do. I know that there are those that hassle you about your gender but what do they know? You can work along side of me anytime.

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

Hi guys,

Having been a nurse for many years, I have seen some bias...going both ways. Here's my observation:

Attitudes are very contagious. They spread faster than any infection you can name. So when you find bias, it tends to come in clusters...just like MRSA. At times I have tried to outlast the bias, and have always left those places asking myself, "Why didn't you leave sooner?" To me, this means if the atmosphere is toxic, go where things are better. If things are pleasant, build a future with those people.

It isn't pleasant to say so, but there are many sorry men in the USA. Studies have shown that nurses have an extraordinarily high incidence of alcoholic fathers: And they tend to marry men like there fathers. With that association comes many types of abuse, with resultant emotional scars. Choosing the nursing profession may, at least in part, be a sublimation of needs related to difficult family histories. Therefore, I think that at least sometimes, what looks like a bias against a male nurse is really just the acting out of other negative feelings arising from troubled personal situations that involve men.

Nurses earn enough to enable them to leave an unpleasant home situation where another woman earning less might feel compelled to stay. These wounded ladies can be difficult to work with. And may the Good Lord help you if you work with several of them in a confined space! Just leave! Go someplace else! You will not win their hearts! People, regardless of their biases, tend to migrate toward others who think like they do. When this happens on a unit, or in an organization, the air gets bad very quickly.

Thanks kindly for listening,

FNPwannabee

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

Originally Posted by FNPwannabee

Hi guys,

Having been a nurse for many years, I have seen some bias...going both ways. Here's my observation:

Attitudes are very contagious. They spread faster than any infection you can name. So when you find bias, it tends to come in clusters...just like MRSA. At times I have tried to outlast the bias, and have always left those places asking myself, "Why didn't you leave sooner?" To me, this means if the atmosphere is toxic, go where things are better. If things are pleasant, build a future with those people.

It isn't pleasant to say so, but there are many sorry men in the USA. Studies have shown that nurses have an extraordinarily high incidence of alcoholic fathers: And they tend to marry men like there fathers. With that association comes many types of abuse, with resultant emotional scars. Choosing the nursing profession may, at least in part, be a sublimation of needs related to difficult family histories. Therefore, I think that at least sometimes, what looks like a bias against a male nurse is really just the acting out of other negative feelings arising from troubled personal situations that involve men.

Nurses earn enough to enable them to leave an unpleasant home situation where another woman earning less might feel compelled to stay. These wounded ladies can be difficult to work with. And may the Good Lord help you if you work with several of them in a confined space! Just leave! Go someplace else! You will not win their hearts! People, regardless of their biases, tend to migrate toward others who think like they do. When this happens on a unit, or in an organization, the air gets bad very quickly.

Thanks kindly for listening,

FNPwannabee

I want to say I applaud ANYONE who is a nurse, from all modalities, from one on one care to trauma flight nursing and all the areas inbetween. I do agree with your comment of there being needs related to difficult family histories. However, I dont think all ppl hold grudges against men just because they have had bad experiences. I love working with any nurse that is confident in what they do, because you know better than I that some are not, and I have noticed a man is more confident usually than a woman in any situation. Therefore, having said that, I have no problem at all working with a man who chose nursing as a career, actually I am very proud to have one on my team. You are correct that ppl migrate towards where they feel comfortable, and if that means biase towards any nurse, youre right, get out before you find yourself in the middle of it. I am a "wounded lady" but not "difficult to work with" at all. Actually you all should be flattered, it shows a woman how a real man is suppose to be. JMHO

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

I have been a nurse for just over 22 years...and yes I am a male. I can only think of one time when I was ever discriminated against because of my gender. That unfortunately was by my fellow nursing students. There were four females in my class who did their best to make my experience most unhappy. They even questioned my sexuality; even though I was married and had two sons. Although it was unpleasant at times, these nasty women taught me to be assertive and motivated me to be the best nurse that I could. I believe the key to success is education. With education the world is yours. Granted being appreciated at times for my strength does get boring; but being appreciated for my knowledge never gets old.

Re: Discrimination Against Men in Nursing

My name is James a nursing student from Toronto, Ont. Canada. There is alot of different sterotypes out in the public eye regarding men and nursing and it is time to male nurses stand up and say that is needs to stop. We need to remind the public that these sterotypes are not ture and unfounded. Am invloved in educating high school student about breaking down these sterotypes surrouding men and nursing. Working togther we can stop the sterotyping out there which is not helping the image of nursing for men in the profession. Looking forward in hearing your thoughts.

James

"Nursing rocks"
" Are you men enough to be a nurse"