Gender Roles In Nursing

Changes in the late 1800's resulted in universities admitting women, thus allowing them to explore many more educational opportunities. These factors together provided the impetus for establishment of hospitals and schools to formally train nurses, with many schools opening for the first time in the 1870s. At the same time, though the need for nurses had been established and the importance of their role within the realm of medical care recognized, there was a great deal of opposition to the proposal that nurses should be formally educated. This attitude was epitomized by a well-known article of the time published in 1908, 'The over-trained nurse' in which the author asserted that nursing was not a “profession” but merely an “honorable calling”. Consistent with this notion, public perception viewed nursing as a job that women were generally suited to perform rather than one which required special skill and was even equated with a religious “calling”. This view, influenced by early nursing's relationship with religious orders remained far into the 20th century.(Lasseter, 1999).

The nursing field was mostly dominated by males before world war one, but census data from 2011 states that “Women outnumber them 10:1.” in the nursing field (Diamond). What used to be the norm of men being nurses and doctors have now switched. Josh Mitchell from the wall street journal reported that "Women account for a third of the nation's lawyers and doctors, a major shift from a generation ago”

This scenario presents various ethical issues that could be argued several ways from HIPPA violations to whether or not this patient has/had the cognitive ability to understand the execution of an advanced directive and Power of Attorney. Advance Directives are put in place for this very reason. It eliminates the need for family members to make a choice in the heat of the moment and also respects the wishes of the person whom it affects directly. Although Mr. E’s hypoxia could affect his ability to think clearly one cannot assume that he has an altered level of consciousness nor the inability to execute an advance

Up until the 1800’s, the job of a nurse belonged to the male population because of its affiliation with the military and religious orders. Early religious orders such as the Benedictine nursing order and St. Alexis were brotherhoods delegated to holy men. The military utilized male nurses during a time of war in the front lines, while female nurses worked in the hospitals. But because of the shortage of male nurses during the civil war, women were recruited to take the place of the men and the emergence of nursing schools dedicated to women started to flourish while diminishing the male role as a nurse. Unfortunately, in today’s society, the role of a nurse is thought to be that of a females job and men who enter the field are considered

During the Victorian times, men were perceived to be better to women when it came to education. Therefore, educating a woman was completely a waste of resources and what men expected from women was to be obedient, humble and generous to men (Carol, 2011). Oakley (1975) highlighted that women did work in jobs associated with supposed female skills for example cleaning. (Up until the 19th century) . Until the mid 19th century nursing was not an activity, which was thought to demand either training or skills as nightingale stated that nursing was left to those were too drunken, (who were drunkards), who had no money for apprenticeship or too dirty (Allen, 2001). Carol (2011) pointed out that respectable woman were not interested in hospital jobs because it was considered as menial jobs and nursing was described as duties of servants.

We all have been victims of gender bias, whether in the academic fields; our roles at home; or even in the clothes we chose to wear. This problem is not something that came up recently, rather it’s an issue that has been ongoing for centuries. As a child, if you are a girl, you wear pink clothes with flowers and play with Barbie dolls. A little boy on the other hand, wears blue and walks around with toy cars and video game controllers. Before we can choose our goals, we are assigned specific gender roles and career paths according to our sex. Nursing is one of those fields oriented mostly towards females, despite all the advancements made in gender equality; a male nurse is still frowned upon. According to the textbook, nursing originates

New advertisements for the nursing field include posters designed for this campaign aimed to boost the attractiveness of the image of men in nursing by illustrating concepts of brotherhood, belonging, men helping men, and leading the way. One of the recent posters out there shows a student nurse "reverse mentoring" another nurse with technology proving that this is an educational line of work. AAMN, American Assembly for Men in Nursing, hopes that these contemporary images of professional, compassionate, and competent nurses will chip away at stereotypes about men in nursing (Stokowski

For many years, both men and women have tried to overcome gender roles in the workplace. Female nurses have traditionally been the majority and because of this, many of the expectations of the nursing profession seem to favor the feminine roles. In the 1850’s, a British woman by the name of Florence Nightingale became the ideal image of the professional nurse when she discovered sanitation issues that brought the mortality rates down from 47.9% to 2.2% for soldiers in barracks during the Crimean War. Upon returning home she discovered she had become arguably the most famous Victorian with the exception of Queen Victoria herself (BBC News, 2006 as cited in Wikipedia). Since that

For centuries now, women have been bombarded with an infinite amount of conflicting and overwhelming messages about what it means to be a woman and which behaviors are considered appropriate, especially regarding sexual behavior. Traditionally, women have always been defined in relation to men. Men are seen as strong, while woman are seen as weak. Men are superior and women are their subordinates. This is exemplified by the fact that “masculine” traits such as strong, non-emotional, and competitive are considered socially desirable traits, while “feminine” traits such as docile, emotional, and passive are not. We evidently live in a society that is not only sexist, but also undoubtedly racist. The white woman typically appears as virtuous and pure, while the woman of color typically appears as unclean and tainted. If the woman of color also happens to be poor, she appears as being even more worthless. Therefore, in the United States, femininity as a concept is inextricably linked with concepts of race and class. In the present paper, I discuss the effect that this is having on women and their sexuality, the events that have paved the traveled path towards gender equality, and current issues plaguing women today, such as the attack on our reproductive rights and our value as women.

One aspect of nursing that has changed since the early 1800’s is nursing education. There was no question about the credibility of the women providing care to soldiers after the war. For many years untrained nurses and consequently nursing students cared the sick without any supervision. In 1873, the need for educated nurses was sought but was opposed by untrained physicians who thought trained nurses would pose a threat to their jobs (Gary & Hott, 1988). “Nurses have evolved

“Males make up about 5% of all RNs working in the United States today” (Poliafico). Nursing is a profession in the health care field that concentrates on the nurturing care of individuals. The United States currently lacks testosterone (the male hormone) in the nursing field. The subject is something many people have thought about at least once in their lives. Some may argue nursing is a career meant for a woman, while others may argue it is a non-gender specified career option. Either way, the world has come to accept the lack of men in nursing. The nursing profession should be for both men and women, but society puts a stereotype on the ‘average nurse’ preventing men from being accepted into this career.

Today, most people perceive nursing as a women profession. My brother who enter this field have been looked at as out casts. Even though my friend thought that he going into the wrong field, she works as a RNA at duke she told my brother not to get in this profession. it is hard to do this job being as a men. Many individuals feel that a man does not belong in a feminine profession. I believe that statement to be untrue and unfair. The issue of gender discrimination in nursing is the same as other professions. The only difference is nursing is dominated by women, and men are the minority fighting for equality. Male nurses may belong, but there is not still many around. According to the U.S. Labor Department statistics, "6.7 percent of registered nurses were male"(statistics).It is a lot to learn from this discrimination. How many times do we think when word comes Nurse we always think it’s female. Since my brother came in this field I always think about both.

The name nurse often carries with it negative connotations in the eyes of males. It is inherently feminine in its perception and plays a large role in scaring men away or causing them concern about what others think and leading them into positions that are thought of as more manly. Nursing is unique in the wide range of specializations that it offers, and that may play a part as to why horizontal segregation is so widespread as opposed to vertical. Oftentimes males seek positions of prestige and in nursing those desires may be filled by working in masculine roles as opposed to higher-ranking positions that would typically validate success in other professions. From the data gathered and personal accounts reviewed, it seems that men chose positions thought of as more masculine based primarily on fulfilling the conceptions of gender identity. Financial interests and personal desires do have an effect, but it seems that sticking to the gender “rules” is the largest factor in determining the careers of practicing male nurses.

Throughout history, nursing is one of the branches of the healthcare field that has been viewed by many societies as a female profession. This notion has been influenced by the different cultures and the societal view of the ideal woman. Positive characteristics, such as patience, compassion, caring, and kindness that are associated with characteristics of nurses are considered to be “womanly.” Consequently, the society expects men to exhibit characteristics of bravery and protectiveness, which are traits exhibited by warriors. The common stereotypes among men in nursing are failed medical school applicant, gay or effeminate, a misfit, or womanizer (Burton and Misener, 2007). Early nursing leaders such as Lavinia Dock and Florence Nightingale also compounded prejudicial views of men in nursing. Nightingale 's image of the nurse as subordinate, nurturing, domestic, humble, and self-sacrificing, as well as not too educated, became prevalent in society (Selanders & Crane, 2012).

Many believe that nursing has always been a female profession, but contrary to belief, it was not uncommon to find a male nurse taking care of the sick and the dying, even though, they did not receive as much as attention by scholars and historians as did women throughout nursing history. For instance, during the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire, monks would take care of the sick and the old, which continued throughout the Middle Ages, especially when the Plague was rampant throughout Europe. The Alexian brothers are a prime example of a male organization, during the Middle Ages whose duty it was to take care of the ailing (Rangel, Kleiner, & Kleiner, 2012). Even before the Roman Empire, both men and women would have basic knowledge of plants and herbs that would be use to take care of the ailing. For men in nursing they have always been connected to an religious organization such as monasteries, priest or spiritual leaders, or brotherhoods. By being connected to a spiritual organization there was no discrimination between men and women because they were doing their spiritual job. But once religion started to disappear from nursing and it became more systematic such as the reforms that Florence Nightingale helped to enacted (McMurry, 2011, p. 23) which slowly pushed men out of this profession while women remain and became the majority.