Male nurse

Although widely seen as a female profession, and mainly portrayed as such in the media, nursing is gradually becoming a more inclusive profession. Males make up around 10% of the taskforce in the UK, 6.4% of nurses in Canada, and 23% of nurses in Iran. In 2011 in the United States, there were approximately 3.5 million nurses, with approximately 330,000 (9%) of those being male. Although widely seen as a female profession, and mainly portrayed as such in the media, nursing is gradually becoming a more inclusive profession. Males make up around 10% of the taskforce in the UK, 6.4% of nurses in Canada, and 23% of nurses in Iran. In 2011 in the United States, there were approximately 3.5 million nurses, with approximately 330,000 (9%) of those being male. While the current structure of the medical field, including nursing care, does not directly translate to historical provision of care, there is a history of male presence in caring for the sick and infirmed. The term nosocomial originates from the latin nosocomi, the name given to male caregivers, meaning that men were prominent in Ancient Rome. Years later, during the plagues that swept through Europe, male nurses were also the primary caregivers. In the 3rd century, men in the Parabolani created a hospital and provided nursing care. The Codex Theodosianus of 416 (xvi, 2, 42) restricted the enrollment on male nurses in Alexandria to 500. In the 14th century, the Alexian brothers existed as a Christian religious congregation with strong emphasis on care for the infirmed. Later, John of God, following a conversion to Christianity, provided care for both the physically and mentally ill and notably challenged the stigmas associated with Mental Illness. Later, he founded the Brothers Hospitallers of Saint John of God which continues to work with the poor and infirmed to this day. There are several reasons suggested for a low rates of nursing by males: stereotypes of nursing, lack of male interest in the profession, low pay, nursing job titles such as Sister and Matron, and the perception that male nurses will have difficulty in the workplace carrying out their duties. It is argued by the Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing that the 'continuing stereotyping' of male nurses is the main reason for low intake. Unlike the campaigns and groups set up to increase and promote women's opportunities in medicine surgery, engineering and computer science there have been no comparable campaigns to increase the number of males in nursing. To address this issue, recent research reviews have iterated calls to action for increasing the recruitment and developing strategies for the retention of male nursing students in the profession. In Northern Ireland, a campaign ran by Queen's University has been aimed at getting more males interested in nursing, with varying levels of success. Whilst there are low numbers of male nurses, there is no indication that they suffer in their career. Pay disparity results in male nurses earning more than their female counterparts, mainly from taking on more shifts and working overtime. Anecdotal evidence suggests that male nurses are more likely to be fast-tracked into management positions. Furthermore, a report into the role of men in nursing found there to be more focus on human caring amongst male nurses. The Society of Registered Male Nurses merged with the RCN (Royal College of Nursing) in 1941.