Article

Male Student Nurses and Nursing Education
Jorge L. Corchado, RN, MSN, DNSC(c)
Assistant Professor, University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo School of Nursing

Withers (cited by McKenna, 1991) informed us that the first trained midwife was Agnodike. She lived in third-century B.C. Athens, where females could not study medicine. To pursue her calling, she cut off her hair, assumed male attire, and attended lectures under famous Hierophilus. Agnodike later practiced successfully as a midwife.

In the United States, obstetric experience for male nurses has been accepted since 1960. This was made possible because of the National League for Nursing, which reported that the basic nursing curriculum should have no differentiation for men and women (McKenna, 1991). Even though male midwives have practiced in previous centuries, many healthcare professionals believed that midwifery was hardly a profession that was likely to appeal to men.

Although most Western countries have men working in nursing jobs, they usually constitute a minority. Men have been part of nursing since before Florence Nightingale established modern nursing, and the numbers of male students are increasing each year (Streubert, 1994). Still, more efforts must be made to ensure improved educational opportunities for male nursing students.

Streubert (1994) described male nursing students’ perceptions of clinical experience. The purpose of the study was to provide insights into the clinical experience phenomenon from a male student’s perspective. To address this purpose, a phenomenologic study was undertaken. Male nursing students (N = 9) in a large academic health center located in the northeastern United States were contacted by letter to participate. Their ages ranged from 18–35 years. Six of the nine participants were 26–35 years of age. This is consistent with the literature, which demonstrates that male nursing students are older than their female counterparts (Perkings, Bennett, & Dorman, 1993). Participants share their beliefs about clinical experience being a place where they are able to put classroom knowledge into practice. In addition to developing the ability to care for people, men in Streubert’s study recognized the importance of and value in developing their intuitive abilities.

Another study (Kelly, Shoemaker, & Steele, 1996) applied a qualitative approach using focus groups to study the experience of being a male student nurse. The purpose of the study was to identify male students’ perceptions of the motivational factors, barriers, and frustrations encountered in becoming a nurse. In the literature review, the researchers addressed the issue of masculinity and femininity in nursing. Minnigerode, Kayser-Jones, and García (cited by Kelly et al.) reported in their study that undergraduate and graduate nursing students indicated that the “ideal nurse” was one who had highly female and male characteristics.

All male nursing students (N = 32) in four central Illinois nursing programs were invited to participate in the research study. The mean age of the students was 32 with a range from 20–63. Eight of the 18 were married, and five had one to three children. Session notes taken by the researchers were compared to an abridged transcript of the discussion, a method outlined by Krueger (1994). The findings in this research include the students’ belief that the society perceived nursing as a feminine profession. Even though the school of nursing was perceived as supportive, the participants had feelings of isolation and self-doubt.

Corchado assists a male nursing student with demonstrating the Heimlich maneuver to fourth grade students.

A descriptive study conducted by Sherrod (1991) examined the degree of role strain experienced in the obstetrical area by male and female baccalaureate nursing students and assessed whether role strain was greater for the male students. The sample consisted of 18 male and 18 female baccalaureate nursing students who had completed their clinical obstetrical nursing experience within the past 12 months. Mean age was 23 years for male subjects and 22 years for female subjects. The majority (67%) was single, and 89% of the sample was white. The Sherrod Role Stain Scale, a 40-item Likert-type scale, was used to collect data on role stain for nursing students in the obstetrical area. Two nurse educators, who were experts in the field of maternity nursing, reviewed the instrument for content validity. Reliability was assessed by pretesting the instrument with 20 male and 20 female nursing students enrolled in one of nine associate and baccalaureate degree programs in the southeastern United States (Sherrod, 1991). The results of the independent sample t test indicated a statistically significant (p = 0.01) greater role strain for male than female nursing students on the overall role strain scale and the conflict, incongruity, and ambiguity subscales.

Morin, Patterson, Kurtz, and Brzowski (1999) conducted descriptive research-focused ethnography. In this study, the focus was on identifying factors that influenced women’s decision making regarding male student assignments in one small community hospital. A purposive convenience sample of 32 women, aged 20–40, who spoke English and who had given birth to normal newborns in one small community hospital in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, was selected. The women were interviewed using a semistructured format. Many participants spoke about how they would feel or had felt if a male nursing student examined them, particularly in the recovery and postpartum setting. Approximately half of the women described the idea of being cared for by a male nurse as “uncomfortable.” Many participants believed that their permission should be obtained before being assigned to a male nursing student. Contextual factors included responses that reflected features of the environment external to the mother, including nursing student characteristics, establishments of relationships, nursing care activities, and partner viewpoint.

In Streubert’s (1994) study, participants were concerned about the expectation and the abilities that they need to interact in the clinical setting. The data obtained in this research reflected the experiences of male nursing students. Nurse educators and practitioners have the responsibility to know and understand men’s participation in nursing. Creating environments that support the freedom to learn about a variety of diversity issues in healthcare is important.

Sherrod’s (1991) study suggested that male nursing students experience more role strain in the obstetrical area than female students. The difficulties encountered by male nursing students in the obstetrical area may be related to societal stereotypes. These stereotypes must be confronted. Students should be pursued to enhance the quality of their educational experiences. The nursing student characteristics, how they presented themselves, and the behavior in the clinical setting can improve clients’ acceptation during the experience.

Kelly et al.’s (1996) findings have implications in nursing education. A few male students indicated that they were assigned only to male clients. Male students want an equal opportunity to learn the science and art of caring. Efforts should be made to give male nursing students educational opportunities equal to the opportunities given to female students. But Morin et al.’s (1999) findings provide some direction for male nursing clinical assignments. The researchers stated that to give students the best possible educational experience and to provide optimal nursing care, nursing faculties are urged to plan male nursing students’ assignments with the study findings in mind. Sensitization of nursing faculty to the various factors that affect a patient’s decision about receiving care by a male nursing student is critical. Patients should be provided with an option to accept or refuse being assigned to a male nursing student.

The following question is one that I think all educators should consider: Does student learning ever supersede patients’ rights? (Morin et al., 1999)

References
Kelly, N. R., Shoemaker, M., & Steele, T. (1996). The experience of being a male student nurse. Journal of Nursing Education, 35, 170–174.

Krueger, R. (1994). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research (2nd ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.

McKenna, H.P. (1991). The developments and trends in relation to men practicing midwifery: A review of the literature. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 16, 480–489.

Morin, K.H., Patterson, B.J., Kurtz, B., & Brzowski, B. (1999). Mothers’ responses to care given by male nursing students during and after birth. Image: Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 31, 83–87.

Perkings, J.L., Bennette, D.N., & Dorman, R.E. (1993). Why men choose nursing. Nursing and Health Care, 14, 34–38.

Sherrod, R.A. (1991). Obstetrical role strain for male nursing students. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 13, 494–502.

Streubert, H.J. (1994). Male nursing students’ perceptions of clinical experience. Nurse Educator, 19(5), 28–32.