Fred Calixtro sees a marketing problem. Paul Higgins ‘06 says it’s an underpromoted career. David Silva ‘04 thinks the name is a turn-off. All three agree that nursing needs more men

Mileham, Mardi

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Linfield Magazine Volume 1 Number 1 Summer 2004 Article 7 Summer 2004 Men in Nursing: Filling in the Ranks Mardi Mileham Linfield College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine Recommended Citation Mileham, Mardi (2004) "Men in Nursing: Filling in the Ranks," Linfield Magazine: Vol. 1 : No. 1 , Article 7. Available at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine/vol1/iss1/7 This article is brought to you for free via open access, courtesy of DigitalCommons@Linfield. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@linfield.edu. Fred Calixtro sees a marketing problem.Paul Higgins ‘06 says it’s an underpromoted career.David Silva ‘04 thinks the name is a turn-off.All three agree that nursing needs more men. Thequestion is how to get them. The good news is thatalthough the number of male nurses is small, it has grownin the last 20 years. According to a 2000 survey by theU.S. Department of Health and Human Services, thenumber of men working as RNs in 1980 was 45,060 or2.7 percent of all nurses. By 2000, that percentagehad doubled to 5.4 percent of the nursing popula-tion – 146,902. Calixtro, an assistant professor of nursing at theLinfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing, is usedto being in the minority. He is the only man on the19-member nursing faculty at LGSSN and was one ofonly seven men in his  70-member graduating class whenhe completed his nursing degree in his native Philippines.However, he said, male nurses were not that unusualthere. His first job was in a cardiac center, where 20 to 30percent of the nurses on staff were men. He later workedin the Middle East and then in Phoenix, Ariz., where hegot his start in teaching – as the only male facultymember in nursing. “They were so happy I was teaching because theywanted a male figure in the nursing program, so malestudents could have a role model,” he said. The nursing profession does a poor job of marketingitself, Calixtro said. The public at large has little or noidea, for example, that nurses play a large role in assessingand diagnosing patients. “We are at the bedside 24 hours a day, and we seewhat happens from the moment the patient comes in,” hesaid. “The doctors will come in maybefive minutes a day, and it’s the nurseswho tell them what happened the last24 hours.”Nurses, especially male nurses, mustbecome more visible and get into theschools, talk to students and educatethem about the profession, Calixtro said.Students get exposed to traditionallymale professions such as firefighting,law enforcement, engineering and themilitary, so why not nursing?Higgins agrees, noting that boys arenot introduced to nursing as a viablecareer option. Even with two aunts whowork in the profession, Higgins neverconsidered it until he decided on amajor career change. After 16 years inthe restaurant business, Higgins beganexploring careers in health carebecause of the job security.“I think people have a misperception of nursing,”he said. “Perhaps it has been perceived as primarilycomforting the patient. But the type of nursing I amgetting exposed to is very technical. It’s a very difficultprofession.”Higgins enrolled at Linfield after taking a few sciencecourses at Portland Community College which heenjoyed immensely and which sparked his interest in themedical field. He explored other career options such asradiology and dental hygiene but ultimately focused onnursing because it offers more options. And being oneof only 21 male nursing students on the Portland Campushas its advantages, Higgins said. “I’m where I want to learn, and I’m glad I stick out,”he said. “Instructors know who I am in the first two days.I think it’s easier to get to know them on a personal basis.”As a sophomore, Higgins has completed only a cou-ple of clinical rotations, but right now he is leaning towardtrauma and critical care nursing. He wants to keep hisoptions open, although he prefers fast-paced work. And heknows nursing school was the right choice for him.“It’s exciting and it’s rewarding,” he said. “Every dayis something new. It’s difficult, and it’s challenging. But allthe effort you put into it, you get right back.” Silva’s route to nursing school was a bit circuitous. Hewas a volunteer firefighter in his native Portugal, wherehe became interested in emergency medicine. He movedto the United States, and while studying to become aparamedic, he got a firsthand look at the role of the ERnurse. He knew the burnout rate for Emergency MedicalTechnicians was high, so he decided to take the nextstep, skipping the EMT certification and enrolling innursing school. He didn’t view nursing as a femaleprofession in Portugal and, based onanecdotal evidence, suggests there maybe nearly an equal number of male andfemale nurses there.Silva proposes a more radicalapproach – changing the name of theprofession. The term “nursing” carries afemale connotation, he says, and that’s adeterrent in appealing to young men. Silva has done his research and citesvarious statistics and studies. One is astudy by Dan Gorman, a nurse managerin Winchester, Mass., who surveyedjunior high students on their percep-tions of nursing.The students indicatedthey thought of the profession as hav-ing influence, power and opportunityfor advancement, yet only 6 percent ofthose surveyed said they would considera career in nursing. However, whenasked whether they would consider it if the title werechanged to a more gender-neutral name such as “regis-tered clinician,” 21 percent said they would. Silva admits his suggestion could run into resistance,so he takes every opportunity to discuss the idea withothers. He has mentioned it to some nurses and foundthem supportive. Reactions from both male and femaleclassmates also have been positive when he explains hisreasoning, he said.“What keeps me going on this name change is thefeedback I keep getting from people,” Silva said. “Everytime I have an opportunity, I ask folks about it. We needa new name for the 21st century nurse.”All three men agree it will take time for society tochange, but shifts are already occurring, Calixtro noted, asmore high schools begin to see the health care professionas something stable that guarantees work. – Mardi MilehamS U M M E R  2 0 0 4 -   98  -  L I N F I E L D  M A G A Z I N EWomen are the overwhelming majority in the nursing field. But students and faculty at the Linfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing say more effort needs to bemade to attract men into nursing including marketing, promotion and maybe even a name change.Men in nursing“Every day it’ssomething new. It’s different and it’s challenging.”– Paul Higgins ‘06Filling in the ranksFred Calixtro sees a marketing problem.Paul Higgins ‘06 says it’s an underpromoted career.David Silva ‘04 thinks the name is a turn-off.All three agree that nursing needs more men. Thequestion is how to get them. The good news is thatalthough the number of male nurses is small, it has grownin the last 20 years. According to a 2000 survey by theU.S. Department of Health and Human Services, thenumber of men working as RNs in 1980 was 45,060 or2.7 percent of all nurses. By 2000, that percentagehad doubled to 5.4 percent of the nursing popula-tion – 146,902. Calixtro, an assistant professor of nursing at theLinfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing, is usedto being in the minority. He is the only man on the19-member nursing faculty at LGSSN and was one ofonly seven men in his  70-member graduating class whenhe completed his nursing degree in his native Philippines.However, he said, male nurses were not that unusualthere. His first job was in a cardiac center, where 20 to 30percent of the nurses on staff were men. He later workedin the Middle East and then in Phoenix, Ariz., where hegot his start in teaching – as the only male facultymember in nursing. “They were so happy I was teaching because theywanted a male figure in the nursing program, so malestudents could have a role model,” he said. The nursing profession does a poor job of marketingitself, Calixtro said. The public at large has little or noidea, for example, that nurses play a large role in assessingand diagnosing patients. “We are at the bedside 24 hours a day, and we seewhat happens from the moment the patient comes in,” hesaid. “The doctors will come in maybefive minutes a day, and it’s the nurseswho tell them what happened the last24 hours.”Nurses, especially male nurses, mustbecome more visible and get into theschools, talk to students and educatethem about the profession, Calixtro said.Students get exposed to traditionallymale professions such as firefighting,law enforcement, engineering and themilitary, so why not nursing?Higgins agrees, noting that boys arenot introduced to nursing as a viablecareer option. Even with two aunts whowork in the profession, Higgins neverconsidered it until he decided on amajor career change. After 16 years inthe restaurant business, Higgins beganexploring careers in health carebecause of the job security.“I think people have a misperception of nursing,”he said. “Perhaps it has been perceived as primarilycomforting the patient. But the type of nursing I amgetting exposed to is very technical. It’s a very difficultprofession.”Higgins enrolled at Linfield after taking a few sciencecourses at Portland Community College which heenjoyed immensely and which sparked his interest in themedical field. He explored other career options such asradiology and dental hygiene but ultimately focused onnursing because it offers more options. And being oneof only 21 male nursing students on the Portland Campushas its advantages, Higgins said. “I’m where I want to learn, and I’m glad I stick out,”he said. “Instructors know who I am in the first two days.I think it’s easier to get to know them on a personal basis.”As a sophomore, Higgins has completed only a cou-ple of clinical rotations, but right now he is leaning towardtrauma and critical care nursing. He wants to keep hisoptions open, although he prefers fast-paced work. And heknows nursing school was the right choice for him.“It’s exciting and it’s rewarding,” he said. “Every dayis something new. It’s difficult, and it’s challenging. But allthe effort you put into it, you get right back.” Silva’s route to nursing school was a bit circuitous. Hewas a volunteer firefighter in his native Portugal, wherehe became interested in emergency medicine. He movedto the United States, and while studying to become aparamedic, he got a firsthand look at the role of the ERnurse. He knew the burnout rate for Emergency MedicalTechnicians was high, so he decided to take the nextstep, skipping the EMT certification and enrolling innursing school. He didn’t view nursing as a femaleprofession in Portugal and, based onanecdotal evidence, suggests there maybe nearly an equal number of male andfemale nurses there.Silva proposes a more radicalapproach – changing the name of theprofession. The term “nursing” carries afemale connotation, he says, and that’s adeterrent in appealing to young men. Silva has done his research and citesvarious statistics and studies. One is astudy by Dan Gorman, a nurse managerin Winchester, Mass., who surveyedjunior high students on their percep-tions of nursing.The students indicatedthey thought of the profession as hav-ing influence, power and opportunityfor advancement, yet only 6 percent ofthose surveyed said they would considera career in nursing. However, whenasked whether they would consider it if the title werechanged to a more gender-neutral name such as “regis-tered clinician,” 21 percent said they would. Silva admits his suggestion could run into resistance,so he takes every opportunity to discuss the idea withothers. He has mentioned it to some nurses and foundthem supportive. Reactions from both male and femaleclassmates also have been positive when he explains hisreasoning, he said.“What keeps me going on this name change is thefeedback I keep getting from people,” Silva said. “Everytime I have an opportunity, I ask folks about it. We needa new name for the 21st century nurse.”All three men agree it will take time for society tochange, but shifts are already occurring, Calixtro noted, asmore high schools begin to see the health care professionas something stable that guarantees work. – Mardi MilehamS U M M E R  2 0 0 4 -   98  -  L I N F I E L D  M A G A Z I N EWomen are the overwhelming majority in the nursing field. But students and faculty at the Linfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing say more effort needs to bemade to attract men into nursing including marketing, promotion and maybe even a name change.Men in nursing“Every day it’ssomething new. It’s different and it’s challenging.”– Paul Higgins ‘06Filling in the ranks

Men in Nursing: Filling in the Ranks

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