Re: Womens interest in male nurses

I have never really experienced this type of predudice. To the contrary when I tell women I am a nurse, or when I was in school a nursing student, I always recieved respect.

The only comment I recieved from a women while in nursing school was another student who was complaining that all of the patients would be calling me "Doctor" instead of nurse.

When I was in school I was still single until my last couple of semesters when I met my wife. It made dating women easier if anything if you want to go there. I should think you would be making it work for you, not feeling somehow emasculated in the eyes of women you converse with.

As far as other men go, Some of my older friends introduce me as a "male nurse" but I think that is a generational thing.

In my other profession which is "manly" by its very nature, I have not heard one peep about me being a nurse, to my face or otherwise. To the contrary, the guys I roll with like having me around especially since our medic got hit.

Stand up and hold your head high-

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Re: Womens interest in male nurses

Originally Posted by 11:11

It made dating women easier if anything if you want to go there. I should think you would be making it work for you

Stand up and hold your head high-

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Thanks 11:11 thats just what I needed to hear!

Can I ask how your nursing ties into your other "manly" profession?

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

Originally Posted by Tony35NYC

I would say it all depends on one's interpretation of words such as 'caring', 'compassionate', 'sensitive', etc. as often applied to nurses in general. People who are staunchly into gender politics insist that 'real' men cannot, by nature, be any of these things. Then there are the assumptions that male nurses who are 'kind', 'gentle, and 'sweet' are gay.

As a man who happens to be a nurse I always find myself laughing at these generalizations. I can be kind, gentle, sweet, compassionate and all these nice things; but I can also be just as rough, tough, and competitive as anyone else. I prefer to be the type of nurse who sticks strictly to the matter of good patient care without getting too friendly or too close. I'm not an unfriendly person, but I've seen the downside of what can happen when the lines of professionalism are crossed and I'd rather not go there.

I've come to accept that it really doesn't matter which set of adjectives one uses to describe men in nursing, some people are just having a difficult time adjusting to the fact that nursing is no longer a female-only thing. There's still that perceived dissonance between being a man and being a nurse, and if its this bad now I can't even imagine what it was like for guys who came into this profession years ago.

Can you expound on the "downside"?? Not sure I'm understanding what you are saying?

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

My other profession is the Infantry, combat arms.

Im not sure if the two "tie" into each other or not other than to say that there is nothing unmanly about nursing, and that I am knowledgable about patient care. I was able to convince our Battalion PA to add fenanyl lollipops to our formulary and Ive taught soldiers to question their care if they are not happy with it (ie anthrax vaccine).

Ironically, a few hunderd years ago nursing was the persuit of monestaries which was all male-

HTH

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Re: Womens interest in male nurses

I think men and women can be excelent nurses they arent there to fight over gender roles but they are there to work as a team and to help pacients and i agree with u dan.

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

Well, how about it men? Where any of you single as nurses, and yet still sucessfully dated or married?

As silly as it may seem, I have a feeling a lot of single yet to be nurses/prospective students have this concern.

What I've found is that most gals say the right things to your face (so as not to appear shallow) but may not be able to help their true feelings. It's tough... to utter those words: "I'm going to Nursing School"

I always thought it wouldn't bother me, but I have to admit, as strong of a personality as I am.. it does a little.

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

and your next sentence can be
"And I make pretty good money too"

Look confident when you say it. It's all in the approach

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

Originally Posted by johny1

Thanks Nephro

I think I'm only concerned about this because Im single. Otherwise it would'nt bother me what people thought outside of my family and friends.

I just left a long term relationship with a male nurse & he had no shortage of female interest from both patients, patients family & female coworkers. That is part of the reason why our realtionship ended. He introduced himself not as a "nurse" but as an RN or a "registered nurse". I do believe the word nurse has feminine conotations that will not be simple to transform.

My advice to any single nurse male or female is to not allow work to dominate ones life/psyche to the point where your career becomes all that you are & think.

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

Originally Posted by lilyflower06

My advice to any single nurse male or female is to not allow work to dominate ones life/psyche to the point where your career becomes all that you are & think.

That's great advice. Whatever the profession!

Re: Womens interest in male nurses

Originally Posted by mingez

Well, how about it men? Where any of you single as nurses, and yet still sucessfully dated or married?

As silly as it may seem, I have a feeling a lot of single yet to be nurses/prospective students have this concern.

What I've found is that most gals say the right things to your face (so as not to appear shallow) but may not be able to help their true feelings. It's tough... to utter those words: "I'm going to Nursing School"

I always thought it wouldn't bother me, but I have to admit, as strong of a personality as I am.. it does a little.

I have two heterosexual male coworkers (I think the experience in the dating world is different for gay guys, but for the record I'm gay and found a partner as a nurse, but that's comparing apples to organges so realize I have no personal experience, other than what I've seen in coworkers).

Both are "ladies men", meaning they are confident in themselves as men who can attract someone of the oppositite sex. One is now happily married and met his wife after becoming a nurse (obviously no longer plays the field), one broke up with someone last year and is out dating and seems to be doing o.k. (he had a "hickey" a few weeks ago).

Being a male nurse may limit opportunities (as evidenced by the op's experience) but as also was said, who wants those ladies anyway. Better you know how they feel from the get go. But realize that it's not impossible to find a girlfriend or a wife.

Things may be different in Austrailia (where the op's from) so I can't say for sure.