Male Nurses and CNA's

Rn 1979 · Nov 25, 2013

Hello all,

I really appreciate your replays and I feel more comfortable now. Yesterday I finished my Cna clinical at LTCF and I really liked helping the elderly and I felt that I have to continue my college and become RN, I am even thinking to work as a cna while in college and quit my current job, I found out that cna job very hard but at least I am doing something good in my life to care of people in need. Next spring I will start my RN clinical and hopefully things become better.

ickc22 · Dec 3, 2013

You should not be intimidated by being the only dude, The girls are like wild animals, They are more scared of you then you are of them. Women are intimidated with male nurses. I've been a dude in nursing since 2009 as an lpn now an RN, I'm finishing my BSN and doing my final research paper on men in nursing. Here is an exert from my paper you might find helpful

Contrary to popular belief, professional nursing was exclusively for men throughout a large part of the history of humanity (Liminana-Gras, 20 , p. 136). Nursing has been a necessary part of human history. It can be dated back to the Byzantine Empire, ancient Rome, and the Middle Ages. During these times, nursing was a task for the religious and military orders. The religious and military orders were all men. In the United States, nursing was the job of the slaves, both women and men. Most nursing history is taught at starting with Florence Nightingale and flows into the start of the Red Cross. In the 19^th Century, the Army Nurse Corps states the switch changed from nursing being predominantly being male to becoming exclusively female (Liminana-Gras, 20 , n.p.). From this time on, nursing is a profession that has maintained a gender distinction, and society has accepted this (Demirary, Bayraktar, & Khorshid, 2013, p. 1454).

In today's culture, we see only a small percentage of male in the nursing field. In fact, according to one study, "Male RNs represent 5.4 percent of the total RN population in the United States" (LaRooco, 2007, p. 121). Males enter nursing with a different perspective than females. They are more likely to have had a previous career or a variety of job before they became nurses. Males tend to enter nursing with prior education and later in life than women. Before I became a nurse, I was a certified marine mechanic. I entered into nursing at the age of 22. Most of the students in my class were in three to four years younger than me.

Methods

Bias

Because nursing has become a female dominated role, there has become a level of bias associated with it. This bias can be traced back to childhood. One study found that high school guidance counselors have offered no support when male students have inquired about nursing (LaRooco, 2007, p. 121). Traditionally males have been encouraged to find other careers. Stereotypes are seen as a major deterrent and have hindered the culture to encouraging men to go into nursing (Meadus & Twomey, 2010, p. 14). Another study showed that most men said that nursing was clearly not a career option during their adolescent years (LaRooco, 2007, 123).

Male nurses have also found a different set of challenges working as a minority in the field. One aspect that studies have shown to be a challenge is within the job setting. Men have found it difficult to establish themselves amongst women in the workplace. Some men have felt that they must prove themselves to the women. Others have felt like they were under a microscope. One stated that is a sink or swim concept. Depending where you are working you might not do well or you could thrive working with the right team of nurses (LaRooco, 2007, p 126).

Job Satisfaction

Even though men are a minority in the nursing profession, they have shown to be satisfied with their career choice. One study showed that even though men face a bias they still felt that being a male in nursing is an advantage. One study showed that men felt that this could set you up to be recognized (LaRooco, 2007, p. 121). Because of this viewpoint, men appear to do well in nursing. Despite their lesser numbers, they are likely to earn more and be promoted into leadership roles quicker than women (Brown, 2009, p. 129).

Another aspect of job satisfaction is the relationships that are surrounding work. Most male nurses stated that they chose to go into nursing because a family member or a close friend was a nurse. Male nurses have also had positive support in their live in regards to the nursing profession. Men have shown to develop positive workplace relationships, which lead to job satisfactions. The importance of workplace friendships has been shown to provide support, information exchange, and elevating job performance and productivity (Chien-Y, 2012, p. 720). This makes for a satisfying career choice.

Overall nursing is about helping people. Men and women both reap the benefit of satisfaction this brings. In addition, nurses find that interactions with patients are a very important factor in nursing, and gender has no hold on that. Studies have shown that patients enjoy having a male for a nurse. This is one of the reasons males have job satisfaction in nursing (LaRooco, 2007, p.126).

Why males choose nursing

When one strikes up a conversation with a person one of the first questions that come out is, "What do you do?" What we do defines us. Ones occupation is the most important source of an identity. It is how one acquires a sense of their place in society and in the workplace. When a male chooses to go into a female dominated field like nursing there can be questions why he would choose to do so. Studies have shown that males choose nursing for many reasons. Some of these reasons include job security and flexibility.

Flexibility is a leading aspect of why men choose nursing. One man surveyed described nursing as "a wild frontier, there are so many directions to go" (LaRooco, 2007, p. 125). The nursing career offers flexibility in job description and in work hours. A nurse can have an office job, answer telephones all day, work in a trauma operating room, conduct their practice in a helicopter, or even hold the hand of a patient as he takes his last breath. Nursing offers many different shifts to work. There are the traditional office hours, there is the 3 shifts in a 24 hour nursing care facility, one can work 3 twelve hour shifts a week, or even a flight nurse has the freedom to work 24 hour shifts twice a week. In my personal experience with nursing, nurse regularly have chances for overtime, picking up extra shifts, and trading for days off. This flexibility is appealing to many people.

Job security is another major aspect of why males choose nursing (LaRooco, 2007, p 127). It is a simple means of practicality. Traditionally males are viewed as the breadwinners. Nursing has proven itself as a growing field needing more nurses. This is a great avenue for men to choose to go into.

How males are perceived in nursing

Another question that may arise when looking at males as nurses is how they are perceived. In my research I have found that there are several different perspectives. One perspective is a question on a man's masculinity. People assume that a man would only go into nursing because he was gay. People who have this viewpoint often strongly disapproved of a male nurse (LaRooco, 2007, p. 121). I have not personally dealt with this assumption. In my research I was not able to find any studies that linked this assumption to be true.

The second perception of male nurses is mislabeling their job title. The public often mistakenly identifies male nurses as doctors. (Larooca, 2007, p. 121). This can be linked to the facts that there are not many male nurses and most doctors are thought to be men. It is a logical mistake. This is something that commonly happens to me. When I was in nursing school I had to wear all white and a lab jacket. One day while I was checking out in the cafeteria the clerk informed me that med-students eat free. I smiled and took a free lunch. I later realized she was referring to the doctors, not the nursing students.

Another aspect of perception is what other nurses feel about working with men. "One male nurse states, "I have found in all the years that I have been in nursing that it is not the patient who has the hang-up, it is usually the staff that I work with" (LaRooco, 2007, p. 126). In my experience, there are times when females have asked for a female to take them to the bathroom or apply a treatment. This is understandable as a means of privacy.

The importance of workplace friendships for job and organizational effectiveness has been shown to provide support, exchange information, elevate job performance and promote organizational productivity (Chien-Y, 2012, p. 720). Collaboration and sharing resources, supporting work goals. Asking each other how to complete a task.

Reference

Brown, B. (2009). Men in nursing: Re-evaluating masculinities, re-evaluating gender.

Contemporary Nurse, 33(2), 120-129.

Chien-Yu, C., Hsiao-Yen,M., & An-Tien, H. (2012). Role ambiguity, employer gender, and

workplace friendship. Psychological Reports, 110(3), 719-730.

doi:10.2466/01.07.21.PR0.110.3.719-730

Demiray, A., Bayraktar, D., & Khorshid, L. (2013). The reasons for choosing nursing profession

and experienced problems of male nursing students. (English). International Journal Of

Human Sciences, 10(1), 1440-1455.

Liminana-Gras, R. M., Sanchez-Lopez, M., Saavedra-San Roman, A. I., & Corbalan-Berna, F.

(2013). Health and gender in female-dominated occupations: the case of male nurses.

Journal Of Men's Studies, 21(2), 135-148. doi:10.3149/jms.2102.135

LaRocco, S. A. (2007). A Grounded Theory Study of Socializing Men into Nursing. Journal Of

Men's Studies, 15(2), 120-129.

Meadus, R.J., & Twomey, J.C. (2007). Men in nursing: Making the right choice. The Canadian

Nurse, 103(2), 13-16.

Osses-Paredes, C., Valenzuela Suazo, S., & Sanhueza Alvarado, O. (2010). The men in the

nursing profession. Enfermeria Global [online] (18).

doi: 10.4321/S1695-61412010000100016

deadrn · Dec 6, 2013

I'm a male nurse, have been in health care since I was 16 (now 42) started in highschool as a nursing assistant because the pay was so much better than the other jobs available. Anyway it was a real eye opener and a bit strange to work with pretty much women only, but I adjusted. I got to the point where I prefered to work with mostly women as I "got" how the operate, funny thing is it's been harder to adjust to working more with other men because I wasn't accustomed to it. The first few times I worked with other men, it was odd, I had been used to being the "big fish" in the small pond. Anyway nursing is a great profession regardless of your gender.

Retired APRN, MSN, RN, APRN · Dec 6, 2013

I'm a female who trained back in the dark ages (1970s). There was one guy in my class, and he and I were best buds. We even partnered up for a lot of our skills labs, including bed baths back at the very beginning.

In addition to what others have said, I think a lot depends on how you present yourself. Give your self an air of professionalism and quiet, caring confidence and all will be well.

Good luck on your adventure in nursing!

mcdebb · Dec 13, 2013

a male cna/nurse in the medical field is looked upon as a strong individual. Most female nurses Love having a male around, we love that they are not catty and have muscles. ;-) Plus, from what I hear from my patients, they feel that male cps/nurses can be very compassionate. Plus, if your the only or if there are only a few males in that department, they get treated very well from the staff.... kinda like spoiled. Once your out in the field, you will see a difference. Good Luck in nursing school... stick with it... it will be very beneficial to you!!

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Rn 1979 · Dec 14, 2013

I really appreciate all your comments and support,. I really love nursing and I will stick to it. I am also excited for my next semester which is officially my first nursing semester. Hopefully I do well..... Thanks again

Rn 1979 · Dec 15, 2013

I moved to Ohio 3 years ago and my passionate was always to help people in need. I am working a full time job beside taking care of my wife and 2 kids, it took me 1 year to finish all my prerequisites and I am starting my nursing program next Jan 2014. It's very hard on me to juggle it all but I am doing that and I won't give up till I finish my nursing degree and advance behind that.... My gpa is 4 and I hope to keep it like this I know it's hard but I will do my best to continue the path that I have chosen...