what are the guys' reasons to become a nurse?

Nursing Students Male Students

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In the current institution that i am in, i've seen very few male nursing students. Some say they're just forced to by their mums; others go for the big salary...

the growing population of nurses today include mostly the females, as i see it.

I spent 21 years in corporate America. It paid very well but was, for the most part, very unsatisfying. Always had an interest in medicine and I got into EMS (EMT in my town and ski patroller at very busy resort). I love the pre-hospital environment but it simply doesn't pay enough to do full time.

So, after being bought out/laid off/downsized/rightsized/force managed (pick your preferred term), I picked up a copy of "What Color Is Your Parachute" and did all the exercises to try and figure out what I wanted to do with my life. They basically guided me toward nursing. So, with my wife and family's support ("About time you became a nurse"), I've started down the road to RN.

I CAN RELATE!!! My only difference is that I got a BS in Emergency Medical Services and I've only spent 5 years in corporate, also unsatisfying. I decided against the prehospital environment once we started having kids; I think for a safety concern as well as a financial consideration. Besides, I'm still involved in EMS as a volunteer which brings an associated but different view to nursing.

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I am a former LMT (Licensed Massage Therapist). I quickly found out before I'd even finished my schooling for that that it is often very hard for guys to make it in that field, esp here in the Bible belt (simply because most guys don't want another guy rubbing on them, and quite a few females out there feel that their body types are less than ideal, and so they are embarassed about a guy seeing too much of their bodies; and/or some females simply feel weird about a guy who isn't their significant other touching them all over). I was actually the only guy in my class at school.

However, while I was in school for massage therapy, we had to learn a LOT of anatomy & physiology. We basically went thru a slightly condensed version of A&P I and II, and our A&P teacher was totally awesome. He made it all seem so relevant and interesting. Before I'd even finished school, I was already starting to think about doing something more in the medical field. I wasn't prepared to attempt to become an MD, so I gradually started thinking about nursing. The fact that nursing happened to be another female dominated field was just kind of incidental for me I guess. However, I've worked as a tech in a hospital for 2 years now and I'm about to start nursing school, and I have to admit - from everything I've seen so far, male RNs have it waaay better than male massage therapists, as far as any gender-equality issues in the workplace go, respect from clients/patients, etc. And the jobs are much easier to secure. And better paying. And so far I have really enjoyed the medical/physiological/patient care aspects that you find in nursing, a lot more. (Of course you still have all of that in massage therapy but obviously it is much, much more limited in scope.)

And yes, I too do not complain about the male to female ratio :) On a more serious note though, it really does not bother me being a "minority" gender-wise; I think that men and women simply bring different strengths to the profession. I'll even concede that women as a whole probably make much better nurses - in certain regards. I think that women - generally speaking - are simply more nurturing/caring, or at least it comes much more natural for them. On the other hand, I think that men - generally speaking - tend to be better at critical thinking. And of course you need both of those aspects - critical thinking and caring - as a nurse. And of course a female can think critically, just as a male can demonstrate compassionate. So it's all good to me :)

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I fell into nursing after the military. I intended it to be a nice back-up career for whatever I wanted to be, when I grew up.

That was 14 yrs ago (17, if you count school).

1. I'm good at it.

2. I'm in it for the money, just like most professionals. I'm not ashamed to admit that.

3. I like being a night worker. I like the autonomy.

~faith,

Timothy.

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Specializes in Licensed Practical Nurse.

what, your in the phillipines, come over here to the usa and male nurses are not rare, in fact the head nurse for the shift i just worked was a dude, at my facility a good amount of the nurses are guys, and i'm proud!!

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Specializes in Licensed Practical Nurse.
i'm compassionate.

i never really stopped to think of myself in that way, but when my sister told me she wasn't surprised i was becoming a nurse because i was compassionate, i was shocked to hear that word applied to me.

but, yeah, i hate to see people hurt, and i stand up for the underdog. i'm a hard worker and i pay attention to details. and i always liked helping people. and work is important to me. and i like expanding my horizons.

and due to spiritual factors that entered my life within the past 3 years, i've come to believe that a life not invested in the welfare of others is a life wasted.

so add all that up, and nurse sound pretty good.

now this is something everyone should read, you took the words right outta my mouth! i'm the same way, people do have to start looking out for others way more!

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Specializes in Med surg, cardiac, case management.
now this is something everyone should read, you took the words right outta my mouth! i'm the same way, people do have to start looking out for others way more!

:up: ditto

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The money, The Women, The Women and lets not forget the women.

I like helping out and why not get paid for it. I also like hearing women discuss men so i'd know what not to do in the future, and also when the women are bickering and backstabbing, they usually come to the guy to vent or get his opinion, I like the part that i can speak on behalf of men when the women are eating luch and saying all men are dogs.lol.

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Specializes in Cardiac Care.

I've worked in corporate America for over 22 years, and sometimes I thought I was pretty important. I worked with some excellent and not-so-excellent nurses and finally decided that I wasn't all that. Many people could do what I did and never make an impact. Nurses made an impact. What they did mattered to people. That's what I wanted to do. I wanted whatever I did to matter to somebody. Almost two years ago, I was on the other side of the healthcare profession (as a patient) and I saw people every day who made a difference in the way I felt. I knew then that nursing was what I was meant to do. I like clinical, analytical and technical parts of it, but I really enjoy the caring aspect of it, as well. And I hear the money's not bad...!

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i knew i wanted to switch to a career in the health care field. i liked the flexibility in where an rn can work, the shifts they can work, that there is a shortage of RNs, and that they are probably more generally well versed in medicine and diseases than other health care providers except for an MD or DO. it also helped that male nurses aren't too uncommon these days.

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1. Travel, Travel, Travel, Travel, TRAVEL!!!!!!!!!!!

2. Helping others

3. Learning certain skills

4. Pay

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Specializes in SRNA.

I look hot in scrubs.

Seriously though, in my previous career, jobs started to get outsourced to the Philippines or India - the writing was on the wall and my job wasn't safe. I started my pre-reqs for nursing while I was still working fulltime. I've always enjoyed interacting with people, and much of my old job was doing that. However, I needed some job security and the healthcare field always interested me. After talking to some nurses and researching it myself, there are so many great opportunities in nursing. It basically came to me asking myself, "Why wouldn't I want to be a nurse?," and I really couldn't come up with anything substantial. I'm enjoying my time in school, I seem to be good at it, and I can't wait until I'm done.

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Specializes in CVICU, ER, Flight.

Well, I started school wanting to work in some sort of humanitarian aid position. After finishing 3 of my 4 years and spending some time working overseas, I realized that the work was not hands-on enough. So, after a break from school, I started the nursing program. I'm happy with it so far.

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