The start of the gender bias already?

Nurses Relations

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Well, the very first day that my nursing class came together as a group I was shown how male nurses "fit in" to our program.

It was uniform fitting day for my class and the line was about 50 people even though about half of us had scheduled a time,we all stood in line anyway. Once I finally got up to the part where everybody was fitting thier uniforms, or rather, the females were being fitted and measured, I was handed a zippered smock to try on. I of course,declined the ugliest style ever invented for a man. The smock didn't even have any school colors on it like the female uniforms did so he was quite obviously dumping an excess of bad stock on the guys and giving the females the traditional uniforms.:devil:

I didn't want to buy a plain uniform of any kind. The female uniforms were made for the program and the male "uniforms" were just a bunch of crap they couldn't sell anyway. There was nothing special about them.

When I turned down his plain white zippered smock from hell, he started ignoring me and started helping the students with uniforms. He didn't say anything to me about what else he had, he just started ignoring me like I wasn't there. i had to pry the fact that he had some patches I needed and white pants. Of course he didn't have my size of pants to try on and they needed to be measured to length,so I am sure they won't come out right because he just kind of eye-balled the length.

An hour and a half after my appointment that I had for two months and $65 later, I have 2 pairs of pants and three patches to show for it. I now have to spend the next year in school in a different uniform from the ones that my classmates wear.

I am positive that this is only the beginning of the seperatism though.

Any male students want to correct that notion?

Specializes in LTC, ER, ICU,.
originally posted by babynursewannab

make waves, peeps....get a dress!:chuckle

:chuckle sorry guys! ;)

peeps, darby and all the other gentlemen nursing students, what excatly do you guys want in regards to a uniform. describe the uniform that you would like to wear that will coordinate with the women in your program.

......I pray to have the guys from the classes in my nursing class because I don't know if I can deal with the women I have seen,LOL

Robin,

We already know who's not going to make it, don't we? It is obvious who the students are that have the inate qualities of academic creativeness to make it through and the ones that are here to bother the other students before they "flame out" in the nursing atmosphere. Don't try to socialize with those students out of compassion, just stay away from them. They will sink, and you will sink with them trying to help. Be polite to them certainly, but never try to help understand them or you are toast. They are "attention vampires" and usually poor students and they almost always take a soul with them.........................Beware.

Make waves, Peeps....get a dress!

That's like what I said to this horses a*s that ignored me. After he said that he didn't have my size in the pants, I said(already feeling the gender bias) "well, I might as well get used to it then................(turning to the women) What size do you think I should try on?"......... (turning to the uniform guy) "Do you have a maternity style?"....Everybody laughed but him:imbar .

Br.Darby,

Let me tell you something Brother Peeps. We are NOT going to be treated like some substandard punks!

Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.

I may be ranting after I see my uniforms Wednesday. My friend, who's a male also, said he was ashamed of the smok that we have to wear.

If it has the same colors as the female's smock, then wear it proudly. The clothes don't make the man, but rather, the man makes the clothes(look good). You could remove the "butt-ruffle" and nobody will say anything.

Sleepyeyes,

Hehe.... good for you guys; I sense a support group in the making...

Women have "support groups" and men have "clubs"...............Something like, "The Honorable Company of Allnurses.com" or "The Man-grapes against wine makers"(you see the mental image?)

I had wondered whether to offer to run a study group. A study group at our school must be approved for the program and be monitored by the instructors. I wonder how I would be treated.

I wonder if I can make progress for the gender in such a hostile environment.

Anybody running a staff sponsored study group? Is that a topic for another post?

originally posted by lpn,future, rn

:chuckle sorry guys! ;)

peeps, darby and all the other gentlemen nursing students, what excatly do you guys want in regards to a uniform. describe the uniform that you would like to wear that will coordinate with the women in your program.

i think our uniforms are going to be a teal green color, and that's all right (it will look good on my tan:rolleyes: ) i just want something standard, even if it was scrubs. if i'm going to have to wear a shirt, i would rather it be a pull-over knit shirt with a nice collar. the pants are all pretty much the same, so they aren't a problem. the bottom line is, men like to dress well also. i'm always wearing my grubby work clothes and camouflage while working and fishing, so i want something nice to wear while in nursing school. heck, i'm even choosy about what kind of camo that i buy! i've came a long way to get into nursing school, and i'm going to demand respect. i don't want to look like a flunky, and have some silly girls laugh at my a$$. if i have to wear something that is more suited to the women, i'll cause enough waves to have it changed for my brothers that will follow. i'm very particular about the way i dress and look, and i want to look good! i'm also very particular about how i do my job. i plan on being one of the best nurses that has came out of this part of the country, and i'm going to look good while doing it. us guys have to keep up our apperance ya' know:p . i'll let you all know for sure tomorrow, the kind of uniform they try and stick me with. i think it's just something else to keep us men suppressed. we will overcome:rolleyes: so until tomorrow, this is your friendly little nursing student\buddy signing off. see ya'. darby

p.s. oh yeah, i forgot:peace!

p.s.s. you guys had better not make fun of my dern uniforms, or i'll tell miss cheerfuldoer on ya'!:(

Originally posted by Peeps Mcarthur

That's like what I said to this horses a*s that ignored me. After he said that he didn't have my size in the pants, I said(already feeling the gender bias) "well, I might as well get used to it then................(turning to the women) What size do you think I should try on?"......... (turning to the uniform guy) "Do you have a maternity style?"....Everybody laughed but him:imbar .

Sleepyeyes,

Women have "support groups" and men have "clubs"...............Something like, "The Honorable Company of Allnurses.com" or "The Man-grapes against wine makers"(you see the mental image?)

I had wondered whether to offer to run a study group. A study group at our school must be approved for the program and be monitored by the instructors. I wonder how I would be treated.

I wonder if I can make progress for the gender in such a hostile environment.

Anybody running a staff sponsored study group? Is that a topic for another post?

Go ahead with the study group, Peeps, you'll be great. It'll be amazing to you to observe how many "friends" you pick up after you get your first "A" in your nursing classes. ;)

Progress for the gender? Yes, you can. Our uniforms were affectionately renamed when one guy stepped onto the elevator for our first clinical with the white shirt, white pants, white socks, shoes, and white heavy canvas-type-cloth vest, and then sputtered, "Gawd! I feel like a TAMPON, fer crissakes!!"

:rotfl: :roll BWAAHAHAHAHAAA!! :roll :rotfl:

geez Ricky, where are ya when we need ya???

Originally posted by Sleepyeyes

"Gawd! I feel like a TAMPON, fer crissakes!!"

:chuckle :rotfl: :lol2: :chuckle

Heather

Go ahead with the study group, Peeps, you'll be great. It'll be amazing to you to observe how many "friends" you pick up after you get your first "A" in your nursing classes.

So true Sleepy!:chuckle Getting "A's" and having an understanding of the material being lectured is like being a freaking millionaire!!

After class the other students would just crowd around me asking questions and sometimes the teacher would be just sitting there all alone!:zzzzz I would look at her like "I need crowd control" and I would say "but that's only my understanding. The teacher is available now to clarify that"

I have to admit that it also helps if you know a woman's definition of "charming" but I played the role of a rock star for much of the last year because of my study habits and my availability when I saw that someone needed my help. I helped a small group(Peep's groupies) through micro that would have failed for sure. They still email me for advice and I always answer them.

Future LPN

Peeps, Darby and all the other gentlemen nursing students, what excatly do you guys want in regards to a uniform. Describe the uniform that you would like to wear that will coordinate with the women in your program.

I want to wear a uniform that is made for a man(which obviously a zippered smock is not) that has the same colors and pattern of the women's uniforms.

The plain white zippered smock is looking good on a dentist but not on a student that works side by side with females dressed in the "real" uniforms.

I made an interesting observation today as I went over the uniform requirements for male nurses. The form stated that we could only wear the "uniform" as provided by the uniform company.

How is a plain white smock a "uniform"?

A "giant tampoon"!!:roll exactly!

How can they not see how ridiculouse that looks?

I agree with you Peeps.......I have learned to weed those out quickly......I have a female friend who is older than I and we study well together so we are kind of sticking with the same classes to help each other. We always make sure we get the same lab and such.....it helps......

The last person I saw in a zippered smock was my old boss, who happened to be a fifty-eight year old pharmacist with the fashion sense of a toad.

I feel for you, Peeps. Well, I'd feel for you more if my uniform wasn't heinous... ;) It consists of the aforementioned "tampon costume"...and a red pinafore. A RED PINAFORE!! ::falls over:: It's awful.

There aren't any guys in my clinical unit, so I don't know what their uniforms look like... But I bet it's the plain white smock thing. But hmm... White smock versus red pinafore...

Can I come to your school? ;)

Donna :)

Specializes in LTC, ER, ICU,.
originally posted by peeps mcarthur

so true sleepy!:chuckle getting "a's" and having an understanding of the material being lectured is like being a freaking millionaire!!

after class the other students would just crowd around me asking questions and sometimes the teacher would be just sitting there all alone!:zzzzz i would look at her like "i need crowd control" and i would say "but that's only my understanding. the teacher is available now to clarify that"

i have to admit that it also helps if you know a woman's definition of "charming" but i played the role of a rock star for much of the last year because of my study habits and my availability when i saw that someone needed my help. i helped a small group(peep's groupies) through micro that would have failed for sure. they still email me for advice and i always answer them.

future lpn

i want to wear a uniform that is made for a man(which obviously a zippered smock is not) that has the same colors and pattern of the women's uniforms.

the plain white zippered smock is looking good on a dentist but not on a student that works side by side with females dressed in the "real" uniforms.

i made an interesting observation today as i went over the uniform requirements for male nurses. the form stated that we could only wear the "uniform" as provided by the uniform company.

how is a plain white smock a "uniform"?

a "giant tampoon"!!:roll exactly!

how can they not see how ridiculouse that looks?

peeps, i am already an lpn, i am a future, rn :) i can understand how you can be concern of your looks and wanting a male styled uniform with colors befitting a man. i personally don't understand the drama since it will only be for clinicals and for your school days. i will stick to welcoming people and leave the "hard" threads alone. ;) just kidding, of course.
Peeps, I am already an LPN, I am a Future, RN

My apologies. I have subscribed to more threads than usual and I'm blurry-eyed from studying psych.

I personally don't understand the drama since it will only be for clinicals and for your school days.

I think that it is very important that you at least understand my point. You certainly don't have to agree with it, but ignore it and you will be facing it head-on one day.

In a nutshell:

The male "uniforms" are not uniforms at all. The "tampon costumes" are obviousely condescending and say "you don't belong to our program" to me because they aren't similar to the other uniforms enough to tell if I'm even in the program.

I feel segregated.

Diane

White smock versus red pinafore...

What's a pinafore?...........................Sounds like food to me!:chuckle

Specializes in LTC, ER, ICU,.

peeps wrote:

my apologies. i have subscribed to more threads than usual and i'm blurry-eyed from studying psych.

stephany writes: :chuckle you are alright with me, peeps. have a great one! apology accepted:)

Well Peeps, I went and ordered my uniforms today, and I was given a choice of a smok, or a teal colored polo shirt. I got the polo shirts, and two white lab coats, and two white pants. I actually do look like the rest of the crowd, and our uniforms look pretty good. We had our orientation today, and the men were treated really well. I think I'm going to like it! keep up your fight, and help to get the men that come after you some nice threads. Good luck. Darby :)

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