September 11 tribute – God Bless America

9/11/2001 is the most unforgettable day in the history of United States. Many lives were lost due to terrorist attacks both on planes and on all those building where strike happened. Today It has been 10 years since that horrified day.

“We will never forget“. Malenursingscholarships.com gives deeply condolences to the victim families.

On that day all the firefighters, emergency paramedics, Police and all medical staff showed their heroism by helping all those alive victims to safe places. “Our sincere tribute to all who lost their lives, who gave up their lives while saving, all those brave souls who responded to emergency including Firefighters, Emergency paramedics, Police department and Hospital staff including nurses, nursing aides, doctors who helped affected citizens for their treatments”

God Bless NYPD
God Bless NYFD
God Bless all medical staff.
God Bless America.

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Malenursingscholarships.com

Male nurse discrimination

Gender Discrimination For Male Nurses And What Can Be Done?

In recent years it has been observed that there has been an increased interest of males in the nursing profession. One prime reason that has led to the growth of males in the healthcare and the medical industry is the career prospects that the nursing profession offers. It is no longer considered to be a female oriented and dominated profession. Healthcare units are encouraging men to join the profession and fill in the shortage of nurses that the nation is currently facing today. Currently there are 5.7 registered nurses in the nation and more are required to bridge the gap. The number of males joining nursing school has increased to a large extent and the current figure of males attending nursing schools in the USA is 13%.

The above is indeed good news however when it comes to the male nurse satisfaction in the nursing profession many of them complain of gender discrimination from nursing care units and their female counterparts. There are many male nurses who state that this discrimination begins from the classroom itself. They state that the classes are directed towards the female student and there are some books and text that even has “she” indicating that the nursing profession is targeted towards the female gender only.

Some even complain that these texts refer men as patients or doctors and they never specify them as nurses. This bias exists from the learning environment and stretches into the nursing profession. Even in the workplace male nurses are considered to be inferior to their female counterparts and they are treated differently by their co-workers, supervisors etc. There are some patients who do not like the presence of male nurses and they often reject their services. Many patients even consider them to be homosexual or effeminate for opting to choose a female dominated profession. There are many stereotypes and mental preconceptions that the male nurse faces even today. They are often prohibited entry in the delivery and labor rooms of hospitals to a large extent too.

Keeping the above in mind it is obvious that male nurses will suffer from a low morale. There are ways in which this gender discrimination can be handled. There needs to be an evolution to break mental barriers and generate the acceptance of the male nurse in the nursing profession. The first place where this can be done should start from nursing schools. Male students should be placed at par with their female classmates. The nursing curriculum should be more male oriented and the text books should address both genders as nurses.

Healthcare units should encourage the employment of more males in the profession to balance the male-female ratio. In this manner the discrimination of the male nurse can be handled effectively. Patients also need to change their perceptions and attitudes towards the male nurses and accept them more in the healthcare and medical units. The nursing profession needs an evolution and this has to be done for the betterment of male nurses who are still struggling with gender discrimination and bias in the nursing and medical profession.

Nurses in new zealand

Male Nursing In New Zealand

The history of nursing began in New Zealand way back in the 1800’s with the first hospital being established in 1850. Initially females were a part and parcel of the industry and men were not comfortable in joining the profession. In New Zealand there was a common perception that men who joined the nursing industry were gay. This deterred many men from joining the profession in the past. With the passage of time the perception changed and males started to join the medical and the healthcare units on a wide scale.

Now the scenario has changed and men are gradually entering the nursing and the healthcare profession thanks to the public awareness that is created. In the past it was observed that men did not have the option to join the profession as it was a dominantly female area. Times changed and the shortage of nurses in the medical and the healthcare industry prompted the males to come and join the profession. It was observed that men and women were indispensable to the medical and the healthcare industry and they were both required to bridge the gap.

Male nurses began to get accepted and patients liked their presence at the hospital and health care units. There are now a number of scholarships and financial aid that is available to the male nurse in New Zealand. Male nurses are now role models to a number of young men who dream of becoming a part of the nursing and the healthcare profession in the nation

Famous male nurses

Famous male nurses in history

The following are some of the notable and most famous Inspirational male nurses in history who have left an indelible impression on our minds and the medical fraternity-

1. James Derham (1757-1802): James Derham was the first African American nurse in history. He formally practiced medicine in the USA despite the fact that he never received a medical degree. Derham was born a slave and he was owned by many doctors. It was one of his owners, Dr Robert Dove, who encouraged him to take up medicine. He began working as a nurse till he earned enough to get his freedom in the year 1783.

2. Walt Whitman (1819-1892): Whitman is regarded to be the most celebrated and noted nurse in modern history. He had spent a large part of his career serving as a volunteer nurse in the American Civil War. He was also a poet and a nurse and he had the habit of writing notes and poems to a large extent. Whitman had immortalized his role as a nurse in the poem “The Wound Dresser”.

3. Edward LT Lyon: Lyon became the first male nurse in 1955 to get a commission as a reserve officer in the US Army Corps. He had joined about 3500 women nurses in the Corps and this action of his made the nation overcome the objection to male nurses by the US Military. There was a subsequent amendment to the Army Navy Nurses Act of 1947 that became effective in 1954 that led to the growth of more male nurses in the various military crops.

Black nurses in history

Black nurses in the civil war and world war

It was during the American Civil War that black nurses served in the medical settings. They were mostly into domestic settings that involved cooking and laundering for the soldiers. When the Union Army marched through the South there were many freed black men enlisted in the army. Women members of their families gradually found employment with the unit.

There were five black nurses who had served under the Catholic nuns on the hospital Navy ship called the “Red Rover”. There are four names that have been recorded and they were Alice Kennedy, Sarah Kinno, Ellen Campbell and Betsy Young. There were as many as one hundred and eighty one black nurses, both female and male, who had served in the US government and convalescent hospitals in Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina during the above Civil War.

The first black male nurse to be recorded in history is James Derham (1757-1802). He was the first African American nurse in New Orleans in the year 1793. He was born into slavery and was owned by many doctors. One of his owners Dr Robert Love encouraged him to take up the medical professional and he earned enough money that he was able to buy his own freedom.

The first black female nurse in history was Mary Eliza Mahoney (1845-1926). She was a pioneer for the other black nurses in the nation as she was the inspiration behind The National Association Of Colored Graduate Nurses. She made it possible for other black nurses to be received by President Warren G. Harding at the White House.

Most related article: the National Black Nurses Association

Top 5 Advantages And Top 5 Disadvantages For Male Nurse

Nursing is a very noble and honorable profession. It is very lucrative and it promises the career aspirant great job prospects. Both females and men are working here and the latter in the nursing industry roughly make up five percent of the total nurses in the nation. There is a common misconception that the nursing industry is one that predominantly is the domain of females. Females have been an integral part of the nursing profession for ages and now men are gradually entering the domain. The sector has a number of males who are joining the industry on a regular basis and the top 5 advantages and top 5 disadvantages for male nurses have been listed below:

Advantages for male nurses

1. Attractive Salaries: One of the best parts of the nursing profession is the remuneration that is offered to nurses. The hard work does have a good pay and this is the reason why you can opt for this profession.

2. Career Scope: The career growth opportunities of the nursing profession are immense and there is a huge shortage of certified nursing professionals in the industry. This is the reason why joining the sector ensures that you will be promoted in any of the higher fields in no time.

3. Challenging Field: The nursing career is one that is a challenging job. There are many people who require medical attention and saving the lives of critical patients is indeed a commendable and fulfilling task.

4. Respect In Society: Nurses hold a high standing social respect in society. Everyone respects a nurse and this is one of the best rewards that your job can give you.

5. Excitement Of Job: The nursing job is one that promises you never ending excitement. You will never feel bored in the job and each day gives you something challenging to do.

Disadvantages for male nurses

1. Need To Take the Extra Pressure: Since you are a man you need to take additional physical pressure and handle more than the female nurse can do.

2. Management Issues: The male may have management issues more than a woman. Generally men are more outspoken and they tend to be more argumentative about their job responsibilities and rights.

3. Gender Bias: The nursing professional has been traditionally associated with the female gender. Patients still can relate and connect to female patients more than males.

4. Social Acceptance: People still holds the idea that males in the nursing sector are effeminate. This is a common notion that prevails in the minds of many people and this is one factor that deters aspiring male students from becoming certified nurses in the industry.

5. Lack Of Public Awareness: As mentioned above the number of male nurses in the nursing professional is roughly around 5 %. There is a huge shortage of male nurses in the sector and the level of public awareness in this regard is less.

The above are the top five advantages and disadvantages of being a male nurse in the medical and healthcare industry.

The Discrimination Against Male Nurses: A Look from Antiquity to the Modern Era

Male discrimination in 21st century

There is a great deal of discrimination against male nurses. It begins in the classroom for most male nursing students, and it continues for most of their professional lives. It manifests itself both financially and socially. However, at one point in history, male nurses were actually the norm.

Nursing began in ancient Rome as a male profession. During this time, groups of men organized to give medical treatment to citizens who were suffering from diseases. Through the years from antiquity to the modern era, male nurses worked primarily on battlefields. However, during the American Civil War, women began to help with nursing wounded soldiers.

Women, unlike their male counterparts, were an anomaly on the battlefield. Thus, they were viewed as brave just for being present. As women continued to nurse even after the war ended, they began to form professional organizations. In the 1800’s, female nurses formed the Nurses Associated Alumnae which is now known by the name the American Nurses Association. At the beginning of the following century, in 1901, they formed the United States Nurses Corp. During the first years of these organizations’ existence, they did not allow men to become members. During this time period, the nursing stereotypes of nurses as women began to form.

The nursing stereotypes continued to exclude men as they developed. Nurses were expected to be patient, and caring whereas men where assumed to be hard minded, quick thinking, decisive, and strict. For years, the Victorian stereotypes of men have continued to flourish. Thus, men were expected to not be nurturing. Although both the nursing stereotypes and the general stereotypes about men have waned over the last decade, they continue to be strong in the minds of many people. These stereotypes add to the discrimination against male nurses.

When a man decides to become a nurse, he will likely face discrimination from the moment he announces his decision. Many people do not view nursing as an appropriate field for men to work in. They may openly mock a man for his decision. Once the man begins to study nursing, he will find subversive discrimination against male nurses in his textbooks. The books will normally make reference to all nurses as female. However, that fact is no longer true. The professional organizations that were mentioned above opened their groups to men in the 1930’s, and now, roughly five percent of nurses are males. The textbooks, however, do not recognize this shift. They usually only refer to men as doctors or patients.

Once the man begins his professional career, he will continue to face discrimination against male nurses. In some cases, he will not be able to work in his desired department. For instance, labor and maternity wards, routinely do not allow male nurses. At times, this is a reflection of hospital policy, and at other times, it is due to the request of certain patients. In addition, studies show that male nurses experience low job satisfaction, and they also leave their profession at higher rates than their female counterparts.

However, in spite of discrimination against male nurses, men are joining the field at record rates. It is a field that offers comparatively high pay, room for job advancement, and the potential for high satisfaction.

Most related article: men in nursing history