Not wanting to take care of male resident

SopranoKris, MSN, RN, NP · Dec 7, 2013

You're going to have to get over this notion that you can't tolerate anything "below the belt" on a male patient.

My first semester of nursing school and I've seen a ton of male parts. You know what? It's just a body part! Part of being a nurse is providing total care. Not just caring for the parts that don't offend you. Truly, it is no big deal. The sooner you get over it, the better!

psu_213, BSN, RN · Dec 7, 2013

I wanted to take the class during spring,so can a request to only take care of female residents.
(I will be any religion or sexually orientation for that class...

These were the two statements I found most interesting. How does taking the class in the spring preclude you from taking care of males? Also, what particular sexual orientation are you planning on "choosing" that you think will shield you and allow you to take care of only females?

Retired APRN, MSN, RN, APRN · Dec 7, 2013

I wanted to take the class during spring,so can a request to only take care of female residents.

I think MileyFans just means that she wants to take the class during the spring, which is coming up soon, so she wants to know if she can request, etc.

Just a question of sentence structure and not the real issue.

ArrowRN, BSN, RN · Dec 8, 2013

I had a patient, a creepy old guy, who would rub his leg on the CNA when she was trying to help him. I simply went in and confronted him. Oh, was he livid... threatening to hit me, threatening to sue me, etc. After telling him that I would have him arrested if he committed battery, I simply refused to engage him.
His behavior ceased, however.
We had another patient that was making inappropriate remarks to the ladies. In that case, I encouraged them to write a letter to management addressing the sexual harassment that they were facing. The guy was transferred out the next day and tagged with an "emergency care only" label.
At my current job, we have a couple of... males (I refuse to call them men because real men don't do that crap)... who make lewd comments to the ladies. They simply become a shared patient among the guys. They also get a stern talking to by the charge nurse and the docs. Most of our gals are pretty tough cookies and hard to rattle, though. Still, no reason a gal should have to take care of a pervy-dude when we are fortunate enough to have guys who can take the assignment.

On a serious note, there definitely needs to be stricter laws to protect nurses from patient abuse.

ComeTogether, LPN · Dec 8, 2013

I have take nursing assistant for my prerequisites. I wanted to take the class during spring,so can a request to only take care of female residents. By the way I am a female and freshman in college.I feel uncomfortable seeing anything(grooming,bathing,changing) below a male residents belt. Please help!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can I makeup a reason like religion(I will be any religion or sexually orientation for that class...

You just have to do it. I promise, promise that it will become second nature. I remember feeling like this, being horrified and feeling so awkward to see a naked body. Especially, *gasp* , a member.

Now, I couldn't care less what body part I am seeing. I see the patient as a whole. As someone who needs me to help them. I do what needs to be done and most of the time that involves a member or a lady parts. I don't care anymore, at all.

You just need to get your feet wet and experience it for the first time and you'll feel better and every day it will get a little bit easier.

Hugs!! :-) It will be ok! Promise!

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Dec 8, 2013

I beg to differ, GT. In nursing school, my group of friends, which included a couple guys, had some loud, long debates about the plural of "member." We decided with absolute certainty that the plural is "penii."

Not if you took Latin. Dictionary.com - Free Online English Dictionary

[h=2]pe-nis[/h] [pee-nis]

noun, plural pe-nis-es, pe-nes [-neez] Anatomy,Zoology .the male organ of copulation and, in mammals, of urinary excretion.

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Dec 8, 2013

There's no way around it...half the population is male and you have a lot of years past the CNA class. You WILL have to deal w/ genetalia as an RN. Incontinence care is often a team effort, men need cath'ed or Foley care, their scrotum gets swollen, you need to do a full skin assessment, you need to check their coccyx for pressure issues............

FWIW I live in an area that has a large African immigrant population and have worked w/ many Muslim women. They take male pt's every single day. I am a conservative Reformed Christian myself and take care of at least one man just about every shift I work (I'm in an ICU so that's not even a big pool of possible pt's).

There's nothing sexual or shameful about caring for the male anatomy. Anything that you need to do for a pt/resident is b/c they can't do it for themselves. I do remember taking the CNA class at 17-18 yrs old and thinking, "We have to do WHAT???" I didn't have a clue...I just took the class b/c my high school offered it and it seemed like a noble part-time job. Didn't know I'd love nursing. :nurse: :yes: You get used to awkwardness! Hugs!!

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Dec 8, 2013

In Latin, the -i plural is with an -us noun. member, penes...parenthesis, parentheses...thesis,theses...

missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN · Dec 8, 2013

If anything, the Latin discussion has made this thread worth reading.

OCNRN63, RN · Dec 8, 2013

Not if you took Latin. Dictionary.com - Free Online English Dictionary
pe-nis
[pee-nis]
noun, plural pe-nis-es, pe-nes [-neez] Anatomy,Zoology .the male organ of copulation and, in mammals, of urinary excretion.

No Latin was used in the debate, but there was alcohol, IIRC.

Caribbean Character · Dec 8, 2013

On a serious note, there definitely needs to be stricter laws to protect nurses from patient abuse.

It is happening. Some states have passed laws that makes assault on a health-care worker equivalent to assault on a police officer.

beckyboo1, BSN, RN · Dec 10, 2013

this is the OP's only post ever and they just jointed AN