Initial Formation of Nursing Philosophies Following Fundamental Clinical Practice: The Experience of Male Nursing Students

Recruiting males to the nursing profession: acceptability testing of the 'Make a Difference with Nursing' intervention for post-primary school students

Background

The nursing profession is facing a worldwide recruitment shortage which could be partially addressed by recruiting more males. However, in many developed countries numbers of male nurses have traditionally been low. To address this issue we developed and tested a post-primary school-based intervention to recruit more males into the nursing profession.

Methods

Participants included thirty-four  female students drawn from an all-girls post-primary school, fifty-one males from an all-boys post-primary school and seven males and fifteen females drawn from a mixed gender post-primary school, all located in Northern Ireland. Participants were all sixteen years of age and were in receipt of careers education. The intervention titled ‘Make a Difference with Nursing’ was co-designed with careers teachers, nurses and post-primary school students. This video based intervention was created to fit within existing career lessons and featured nursing staff and students describing their experiences of the profession. Participants completed the six domains of Nursing as a Career Choice Questionnaire prior to viewing the intervention and again after viewing.

Results

Positive and statistically significant increases in perceptions of the nursing profession were found between pre and post test scores across all six domains. No statistically significant differences in perceptions were found between males and females after watching the intervention. Comparison by school type showed statistically significant differences on the domains of prior healthcare exposure (p = 0.046; 95% CI -0.19 to 3.79) and job prospects (p = 0.005; 95% CI 1.04 to 7.01). Students from the all-girls school rated these more positively than those from the all-boys and mixed-gender schools.

Conclusions

A short video presentation to post-primary school students is capable of changing how they perceive the nursing profession. Students expressed surprise over the variety of professional nursing roles suggesting that many were not well informed about the realities of nursing. Providing tailored resources for use in careers lessons can better educate students and teachers about nursing and provide positive portrayals of male role models in the profession.

T-NDX Diagram: Educational Technology Used to Teach Diagnostic Reasoning Based on Nursing Theories

PURPOSE

To describe an educational technology to be applied to the teaching and learning of diagnostic judgment based on nursing theories.

METHODS

A methodological study with 10 stages for the development of educational technology.

FINDINGS

An innovative educational technology is proposed to incorporate theoretical and methodological domains in a V-shaped diagram for the diagnosis judgment.

CONCLUSIONS

The technology is innovative in integrating theory and method in a more comprehensive and original way, considering the philosophies and world views of students throughout the reasoning process.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

T-NDx Diagram may be useful in enhancing the integration of philosophical and theoretical knowledge and diagnostic judgment, especially for nursing undergraduate students.

A Mixed Methods Review of Male Nursing Students' Challenges during Nursing Education and Strategies to Tackle these Challenges

BACKGROUND

Calls to action have been placed for recruitment of more men to address nursing shortage and to achieve a better balance and diversity in workforce. Studies also indicated patients' demand for male nurses. Despite this, male nursing students experience challenges during their education resulting in their attrition. No reviews have explored this research area. This review explored the challenges of male nursing students during their education and identified strategies used to tackle these challenges.

METHODS

Literature was searched within three databases using indexed search phrases and 1 mixed-methods, six quantitative, and 36 qualitative studies (n = 43), published from December 1990 to May 2018, were reviewed. The qualitative and quantitative data were separately extracted and analyzed using thematic synthesis and narrative summaries, and then compared using joint displays.

FINDINGS

"Call me a nurse" and "Male nurses understand us better: Need more men in nursing" were the prominent themes. An array of educational and clinical challenges was identified. Students used appraisal-focused, problem-focused, and social support strategies to tackle these challenges.

CONCLUSION

Considering the identified challenges, the lack of support and efforts from educators and institutions, we reiterate calls to action for strategic policies to help male nursing students adapt to educational and clinical learning environments and to increase their recruitment and retention in nursing.

Maintaining Equilibrium: Socialization and Gendered Identities of Iranian Male Nurses

The aim of this study was to explore the process of Iranian male nurses’ professional socialization and how they negotiate a gendered identity. A purposive sample of 22 male nurses was recruited from six public hospitals affiliated to Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. Study data were collected by conducting semi-structured interviews. Data collection was continued until reaching data saturation. Totally, 25 interviews were conducted. Data analysis was carried out using Corbin and Strauss’s techniques for qualitative data analysis. The core category of the study, that is, the socialization process of male nurses who participated in the study, was “maintaining equilibrium.” Our participants’ strategies for socialization included informing, conforming, and self-establishing. The study findings can be used for developing effective strategies for male staff recruitment and retention.

Promoting Health Literacy in the Nonsurgical Cosmetic Patient

Significant numbers of adults, when presented with basic health care information, have been shown to struggle with their abilities to comprehend and integrate materials presented to them. This lack of perception underscores the essence of health literacy. Even though health literacy is a newer concept, its impact is gathering momentum, as politicians, health care providers, researchers, and the media become more aware of the extent this disparity is seen within the health care system and how it affects patient care. This article explores how nursing philosophy and knowledge development have the capacity to provide a solid infrastructure that may promote increased health literacy among patients within the nonsurgical cosmetic arena.

Men Choosing Nursing

In the nursing profession across the Western world, women outnumber men by a ratio of 10 to 1. The profession is often seen as being synonymous with being female and with femininity. This study aimed to illustrate the gendered aspects of career choice for men who choose to nurse and how a masculine identity can be negotiated within the profession. Using a qualitative interpretive approach, interviews were carried out with 18 male nurses. The findings indicate contradictions and difficulties for men in identifying with the profession and as men. Little encouragement is given to men to join the profession, and for men who have chosen to nurse, there is an attempt to distance themselves from traditional motivations for choosing nursing such as caring and vocationalism. This has implications for the recruitment and retention of men into the profession and also points to a need to examine the relationship of nursing to gendered concepts.

Gender differences in the academic and clinical performances of undergraduate nursing students: a systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Nursing is often regarded as a female-dominated profession. Many nursing curricula are received by mainly female students. It is uncertain how male students behave in this environment of nursing education in hospitals and universities. This article aimed to review gender differences in the academic and clinical performances of undergraduate nursing students.

DESIGN

A systematic review was assessed and different themes were extracted by inductive approach.

DATA SOURCES

A search strategy was carried out for the period 2006-2011 utilising six computerised databases: Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, ERIC, MEDLINE, ScienceDirect, and the Wiley Online Library.

REVIEW METHODS

Research studies were included and screened by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guideline. All articles in English that met our aim were selected and relevant results were abstracted and thematised.

RESULTS

Fifty-five articles were included. Five themes were generated from the literatures, including the differences of academic, clinical, psychological, nursing profession identity and health concept between male and female nursing students.

CONCLUSIONS

Both genders performed similarly in different aspects. Most studies revealed that the clinical placement satisfaction of male students was similar to that of female, despite the negative experiences the former faced during obstetric placement. Further research is needed to examine the gender differences in studying and make changes in the nursing curricula to accommodate with male students.

Factors Influencing Men Entering the Nursing Profession, and Understanding the Challenges Faced by Them: Iranian and Developed Countries’ Perspectives

Context:

Men entering the nursing profession have been investigated from several different perspectives. Due to male gender characteristics and existing public image, nursing is often not considered as a career choice by men. Whether nursing would benefit from increased number of men is a key question in the literature. The purpose of this integrative review of the literature was to identify factors influencing men to enter the nursing profession. In addition, it sought to understand the challenges they are confronted within this profession.

Evidence Acquisition:

A systematic search of the existing literature was performed using an Internet search with broad keywords to access related articles in both Persian and English databases. Finally, 34 studies (written between 2000 and early 2013) were selected and surveyed.

Results:

Most of the studies were conducted in developed counties. The review identified reasons why males choose nursing, and other challenges facing men entering and working in nursing. Themes that emerged from the literature include educational and societal barriers experienced by men in nursing, recruitment, career choice, and role strain.

Conclusions:

Regarding men’s influences on professional development, and also the importance of gender-based caring, policies for recruitment and retention of men in nursing must be followed hastily. However, there is a need for further research regarding the challenges faced by men entering nursing, in both Iran and other developing countries.

Image of nursing held by nursing students according to gender: a qualitative study

This paper is a report of a study to determine the nursing images of female and male nursing students. The study used a qualitative research design to determine nursing images of male (n = 20) and female (n = 20) nursing students. To analyse the data, the method used content analysis. Statements were organized under three categories and seven themes after content analysis. The first category, nursing concept, incorporates the two themes of: (i) female or sister; (ii) job definition. The second category, choosing, incorporates the four themes of: (i) Desire of Others; (ii) Guarantee of Work; (iii) Being Helpful to Others; and (iv) Limited to Academic Achievement. The third category, Gender, incorporates the one theme of: (i) Gendered Approach. Male students have started to take part in nursing programs relatively recently; therefore, more research is needed in the fields of academic accomplishments of male students.

Courage and nursing practice: A theoretical analysis

This article aims to deepen the understanding of courage through a theoretical analysis of classical philosophers’ work and a review of published and unpublished empirical research on courage in nursing. The authors sought answers to questions regarding how courage is understood from a philosophical viewpoint and how it is expressed in nursing actions. Four aspects were identified as relevant to a deeper understanding of courage in nursing practice: courage as an ontological concept, a moral virtue, a property of an ethical act, and a creative capacity. The literature review shed light on the complexity of the concept of courage and revealed some lack of clarity in its use. Consequently, if courage is to be used consciously to influence nurses’ ethical actions it seems important to recognize its specific features. The results suggest it is imperative to foster courage among nurses and student nurses to prepare them for ethical, creative action and further the development of professional nursing practices.

Nursing: the lesser of two evils

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and document the motivational factors, supports, and barriers to choosing nursing and to explore the nursing and caring images of male nursing students. The unique context for this study was the merging of the community health officer and nursing curricula, which suddenly brought men enrolled in the former curricula with the all-female nursing student body. The study was carried out with 15 new Turkish male nursing students. Three categories and six themes become apparent. The "choosing" category was expressed in the themes of "guarantee of work" and "nursing: the lesser of two evils". The "difficulties" category was expressed in the main themes of "bothering" and "teasing and supporting". The "traditions" category was expressed in the themes of "male nurses: non-traditional", and "women's job". The study sheds light upon the gender-based challenges of socializing these male students into a formerly all-female profession.