Males in Nursing and the Stereotype Struggle

There are a total of 3.3 million nurses in the US workforce, and around 9.1% are male nurses. You can quickly deduce that nursing is a female-dominated field. However, the 9.1% number demonstrates a steady increase of male registered nurses. This promotes the stigma that nursing is a ¨female profession¨. Due to this stigma, men in nursing can often face many stereotyping and roll traps. Men entering the workforce should be aware of this, and there are some actions they can take to combat them.

One of the first stereotypes in the United States that is often heard is that most, if not all, male nurses are gay. The interesting thing is that men have been a significant actor in nursing throughout history. India established an all-male nursing school in 250 BC. In times of conflict throughout world history, like in the 11th century with the Crusades or in the late 1800s in the Franco Prussian War, it is men who have nursed the troops.

The Nurse Registration Act of 1919 in the UK supported males in nursing, although it allowed segregation between men and women. This segregation was consistent until after World War II. Upon returning from the war, men did pursue nursing careers. But, even in the 1970s, only 3.7% of nurses were male.

The current significant imbalance, in terms of gender, can reinforce this stereotype against male nurses. George Zangaro, RN, FAAN, Associate Dean at Walden University School of Nursing, states this often stems from insecurities, prejudices, and the generation of the patients. Historically, especially in the last 100 years, there has been an underlying social environment where gender issues were not as progressive as the direction they are taking now.

Gender bias is another issue male nurses face. Male nurses have to deal with female patients that might misinterpret certain actions as ¨sexual assault¨. Les Rodriguez, MSN, MPH, RN, ACNS-BC, APRN, clinical nurse specialist at Methodist Richardson Medical Center argues this by saying that there is no reason someone would go into nursing for such a purpose. It is natural for male nurses to find themselves in these unfortunate moments as they are ingrained in socio-cultural and even religious norms. In the current environment, male nurses should be prepared to be refused by patients because of gender.

Another prevalent stereotype is that nursing is not a ¨man’s job¨, unlike male-dominated careers like law enforcement, armed forces, engineering, etc. This misperception can lead to the notion that females are more caring, considerate, and less threatening, so, therefore, are better equipped to be nurses. There is possibly some historical basis (warranted or not) in regards to skill level. As mentioned above, men were segregated from women in the profession. This often meant that male nurses worked in mental health facilities versus general hospitals. The perception here is they did not have the same level of training or experience (which may or may not be true as a holistic view). The perception may have added to the argument that women are better nurses. This simply is not the case in today’s world but this stereotype remains pervasive in many cultures and is harmful to the entire nursing profession.

All of the stereotypes mentioned have existed for years, decades, and centuries. And, unfortunately, will exist for years to come; however, it is everyone’s duty to combat these, especially male nurses entering the profession. They must always strive to be the best nurse possible and concentrate on each patient and be their advocate. Robert Whigham, RN, a nurse at Doctors Hospital in Augusta, Georgia, advises male nurses to ¨keep your noses to the grindstone and surpass all negativity¨. Avoiding negativity and performing all tasks with excellence will allow male nurses to rise through the ranks based on merit. This will in turn challenge public perception and combat stereotypes.

It is exciting to see that more men have decided to go into the nursing profession in the last decades, and we hope more continue to pursue this in the future. In doing so, this will help dispel the male nurse’s myth and eliminate the stereotypes that have existed for so many years.

We will leave you with this one last thought: It is the duty of everyone to educate themselves and others on the evolution of the gender-related misconceptions surrounding any profession.