Male nurses

FiremedicMike, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Feb 19

I'm glad I earned my RN/BSN for sure. The guys at the firehouse poke fun at me from time to time about being a "murse" but at the end of the day they respect the fact that I have a job skill that I can transition to if my body can't do firefighting anymore and still more than pay the bills - not a lot of firefighters have that safety net.

As for working with women, honestly it's exactly like working at the firehouse.. the conversations are about the same foul topics and the sailor mouths on nurses are the same as firefighters. I remember being nervous when I first started being worried that I'd accidentally slip with my potty mouth, only to realize female nurses are just as foul!

As "taking orders" from women, it's a non factor for me - then again I've worked in a paramilitary environment for a very long time..

bluescoop, BSN, RN · Feb 27

I was AMAB but use they/them pronouns. I don't regret going into nursing just because of the money. It is a very hard career though.

emtpbill, ASN, RN, EMT-P · Feb 27

My former colleagues call me a Reverse Skirt, since I was medic for 25 years and then got my Nursing degree and RN.

I got the last laugh cause I make about 15-20 more per hour as a nurse than I ever did as a medic.

jnb1740, BSN · Apr 11

I have been a nurse for 31 yrs. If I were to do it all over again, I would NOT become a nurse again. I have gotten used to being around mostly women of course as nursing is still female dominated, but per the OP question, no, if I was 18yrs old again, I'd get into the trades (HVAC, Electrical, etc.) or Computer Science, instead of nursing. Don't get me wrong, I think I'm a damn good nurse, but the majority of the public still see nursing as a female job, & honestly that public perception is emasculating to me, even after all these years.

Luke77 · Apr 12

Being a male nurse from experience is a positive and negative. The positive is that women are usually always caddy with eachother but you being a guy it usually doesn't affect you. The downside is if there's a good number of men on that unit it's like a fraternity where they will challenge and test you. Just from my experience.

HiddenAngels · Apr 19

Ha ha ha! I thought this was about to be a Tinder thingy JK

I'm not a male but if I had to do it all over again I would be an engineer, or be in the IT field.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 20

I have been at this nursing gig for about 10 years now, all of it in the ED. About the only change I would have made was getting into nursing sooner. Women nurses can be, shall we say, about as "bad" as sailors when they get into the mood... and if they're acting like that around their male co-workers, it's a sign they've accepted the guys into their group.

brainfixer · Apr 21

JohnHood said:

I worked as a RN for over 30 years. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Same. Been retired almost 5 years after 30 years in neuro critical care/ICU/Trauma CC. I miss the patients, families, and the challenges. Administration , especially upper administration sucked tho.

PacoUSA, BSN, RN · May 4

I have been a nurse for 13 years, it is a 2nd career, went back to school in my 40's. Definitely no regrets! I only wish I had entered the profession sooner.

SentinelTruth · May 7

I'm a male nurse working homecare... I've worked a hospital for about 8 months, and a couple of rehab facilities. I like doing homecare. I feel more free driving around and not being locked into a building other than going to the office from time to time. I don't like working in facilities (other than seeing patients in assisted-living facilities).

If you do homecare though and drive your own vehicle, buy a hybrid or something along those lines. Some of my co-workers drive trucks or bigger SUV's and I don't see how they can afford it... I get paid by the visit and it does not include mileage (common in homecare). I drive a Prius.

jnb1740, BSN · May 7

I have done Home care visits, per diem, back in the mid-90's (I'm old). Worked the floor at a hospital at the same time. Been on the floor since, however I am now thinking about going back to do homecare visits for the same reasons you like it (being free and also being able to concentrate on 1 patient at a time.

Can I ask, how long do your re-visits take (including charting)? How many re-visits can you do in a day, let's say from 7a-4p? Including charting.

Do you do new visits (opens) as well?

Also, does your homecare do salary vs. per diem for their nurses?