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Showing newest 25 of 31 posts from March 2009. Show older posts
Showing newest 25 of 31 posts from March 2009. Show older posts
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Male Nurses Move Beyond Stereotypes
By Rachel Lapp
Even in the midst of the counter-cultural 1960s, those who encouraged Mervin Helmuth in his vocational path must have known he was something of a pioneer. When Helmuth entered nursing school after completing a term in alternative service to the military draft, he was a very unlikely student: a person of Amish background pursuing education and training outside typical community expectations, and the first male to be accepted into a nursing program in the city of Fort Wayne, Ind.
Helmuth had been asked by the director of nursing in the tuberculosis hospital where he fulfilled 1-W service whether he thought about continuing in nursing; he told her that he did not finish high school. After completing his assignment at the hospital, he stayed on an extra year, and completed requirements, including a GED, to allow him to get his foot in the door at a nursing school.
Even after local publicity died down over his entrance to the School of Nursing at Parkview-Methodist Hospital he faced unique challenges. Without a formal high school education, he hadn’t developed consistent study habits. He also had to take a chemistry course, and arrange for different housing than his female counterparts. His family, however, was accepting; nursing, like school teaching, was viewed as “a legitimate reason to go on to school,” Helmuth said.
In 1966, when Helmuth graduated second in a class of 75 and received his diploma in nursing, men represented less than one percent of the professional nursing population nationwide. In the decades since, the number of men who have chosen to enter the field has risen to 5.4 percent; of Goshen College’s 1,627 B.S.N. graduates to date, 68 male nursing graduates nearly reflect the national trend.
Helmuth worked at Parkview Hospital as a nurse, but then decided to enroll at Goshen to earn a bachelor of science degree in nursing. He wasn’t the first male nursing student in GC’s program, but nursing professor Orpah Mosemann, with exceptional vision for the future of the program, asked Helmuth whether he would be interested in earning a master’s degree in order to teach at the college level.
“Orpah saw men coming into the program, and wanted to encourage more to enter nursing, and felt they needed male role models in order to see men functioning in nursing,” said Helmuth. “I give her credit – she was the wisdom behind the nursing program, and she was a mentor for many people.”
Helmuth went on to earn a master’s degree at the University of Florida (Gainesville) and returned to Goshen to join the teaching faculty.
The reasons men are now choosing to go into the nursing profession are similar to those cited by women who go into the field: an interest in caring for sick individuals and promoting wellness, providing a needed service, relating closely to patients and families, endless opportunities for specialization and job variation. Nurses are also in demand, providing options and stability for graduates.
“Economics and gender and cultural biases are [some] of the reasons that men have not come into nursing, but recently there has been more interest. And there are more males from other countries who are starting to look at nursing, and I find they don’t have the same hang-ups about men being nurses – largely centered around the stereotype of nurses being female,” said Helmuth. “Many of our male nursing students are also older than traditional-aged college students. It’s not very kosher yet for male high school seniors to tell people ‘I want to be a nurse,’ so consequently, even today, they don’t come to us straight from high school. They need to understand themselves a little better to go into a highly female profession. Then they are successful.”
GC senior Jared Beasley completed an undergraduate degree in economics at another college before he realized, in part through experiences during training for and working as a technician in a hospital emergency room, that he wanted to pursue a vocation in nursing. His decision to go back to school to earn a B.S.N. was due in part to a “cost-benefit analysis” and also because “there is a lot about nursing that is wonderful. Stability: there’s a lot of job security in nursing. Opportunities are almost endless in this field … I did research and talked to people, and you can go anywhere with this degree: administration, hundreds of different clinical fields, home health, public health, school nursing. The pay is good, the benefits are good. I have never been so absolutely sure about a career move before.”
There are some areas where men may face discrimination during their education, Helmuth said; some nursing programs do not allow men to go on to an obstetrics unit, for example, for clinical experience after they’ve done the same preparatory coursework.
While women were most influential in Helmuth’s life as he chose his profession, he sees male nurses as providing excellent role models for young men whose gifts and interests would suggest a call to nursing.
“The reasons men and women come into nursing are probably very similar. If people have this kind of desire to be able to help someone get well, or give them information that will help patients keep themselves well, then nursing is a good choice,” said Helmuth. “I find men to be just as caring as females. They just need to continue to overcome stereotypes and to know their own strengths.”
Article Source: Goshen.edu
Nursing School Financial Aid Guide - Part 2
Learn Financial First Aid for Nursing School: Get Nursing Scholarship, Grant and Student Loan Info
Article Source: Allnursingschools.com
Click here for Nursing School Financial Aid Guide - Part 1
Announcement: If you are interested in a Scholarship Directory that has been helping parents and students from various countries to find the best scholarships since 2003, Click Here!Nursing School Loans
While no one likes to take out a loan, college loans are an investment in your future. The investment you make now will pay big dividends later in higher income, better career opportunities and job satisfaction.
College loans have lower interest because the federal government regulates the maximum interest that lenders can charge on federally guaranteed student loans. This helps make the loans easier to pay-back, which encourages more people to attend school. In addition, loan repayment does not begin until six months after graduation (or when enrollment in school is less than half time).
There is also assistance for borrowers having difficulty repaying their education loans, including deferment and forbearance. These options give borrowers more interest-free time on their loans.
Stafford Loan
There are different types of loans, including a Stafford Loan, the most common federal student loan available. The Stafford Loan includes the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL)Program and the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program. Both programs are dispersed directly to students, and can be subsidized or unsubsidized, depending on the student's financial situation. Loan amounts are also need-based, and will be distributed accordingly.
Private Loan
Another type of student loan, is a private loan. These loans offer higher limits and no payments until graduation, but interest starts to accrue immediately after the loan is distributed. Private student loans can be made out to either students or parents and are a nice alternative to credit card debt.
You do need to complete federal forms, such as the FAFSA to get private loans. Eligibility often depends on you or your parents' credit score, and your chances of being approved for a private loan are better if your credit score is above 650. Interest rates and fees are based on your credit score, so it is often better to apply with a cosigner to achieve a lower rate.
PLUS Loan
There are also PLUS Loans. These loans are through FFEL and Direct Loan programs, but they are geared toward parents. In order to qualify for this type of loan, you must be a dependent student enrolled at least half time in your undergraduate education, and your parent has to apply for the loan.
This loan also requires a good credit score, and there is a yearly limit. This limit is equal to your school costs minus other financial assistance you receive. In addition to the loan limit, the first payment is due 60 days after the loan is distributed with a small fee that your parents are required to pay (which is usually less than four percent of the loan).
Grad PLUS Loan
Graduate and professional degree students are now eligible to borrow under the PLUS Loan program, under the same terms and conditions. This program is referred to as the GRAD PLUS Loan program.
For more information, visit these financial aid resources:
FAFSA application and information:
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov
Student loan information and opportunities:
http://www.govloans.gov
Stafford Loan information:
http://wwwstaffordloans.com
Nursing School Loan Forgiveness Programs
Loan forgiveness programs, also referred to as loan repayment programs, help students pay back their nursing college loans as they work in a nursing setting. These programs are an ideal type of financial aid, because you can gain valuable nursing experience in a hospital setting, get paid for your work and get reimbursed for your nursing school education.
There are many loan forgiveness programs available in response to the growing nursing shortage throughout the US. The loan forgiveness program is funded by government agencies to help areas throughout the country that are desperate for nurses. So, in exchange for nursing services, the program offers to pay back or forgive student loan debt—usually at least one year of student loans is forgiven for each year the nurse serves in the area of need. This is a great way for you to get out of financial debt while gaining valuable nursing experience.
For more information, visit these loan forgiveness resources:
- Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) loan repayment program:
http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/nursing/loanrepay.htm - Financial aid student guide to loan forgiveness:
http://www.finaid.org/loans/forgiveness.phtml - Federal student loan forgiveness:
http://www.staffordloan.com/repayment/federal-student-loan-forgiveness.php
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Nursing School Financial Aid Guide - Part 1
Learn Financial First Aid for Nursing School: Get Nursing Scholarship, Grant and Student Loan Info
Article Source: Allnursingschools.com
Click here for Nursing School Financial Aid Guide - Part 2
Announcement: If you are interested in a Scholarship Directory that has been helping parents and students from various countries to find the best scholarships since 2003, Click Here!Whether your nursing school tuition fund is half-full or half-empty, chances are you can always use financial aid assistance. Nursing school is expensive, but there are many grants, loans, scholarships, work-study and loan forgiveness programs available to hard-working students — you just need to know where to find them.
Discover how easy it is to apply for financial aid, and learn how the Nursing Student Loan Forgiveness Program (NSLFP) can help you pay for your nursing degree. You should also complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which is usually a prerequisite for financial aid eligibility. Here is a basic tutorial on how to tap into the many financial aid resources.
Nursing School Grants
Grants are a smart way to finance your education because it's "free" money—you don't have to pay back a grant. With over a thousand federal grant programs in the US, worth more than $400 billion, securing a student grant can help you save hundreds or even thousands of nursing school dollars. Sure, it takes time and energy to apply for a grant, but the payoff is well worth the application effort. Often, schools automatically consider you for grants when you complete a FAFSA and apply to school.
For more information, visit these financial aid resources:
- FAFSA application and information:
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov - Federal student aid grant information:
http://www.fsa4counselors.ed.gov/clcf/grants.html - Federal student aid on the web:
http://studentaid.ed.gov
Scholarships generally recognize academic achievement, athletic ability or artistic accomplishments. Scholarships can be very competitive, but they do not need to be paid back and are an excellent way to help finance your education.
Some scholarships may have restrictions, such as applying to a specific course of study or active involvement in an organization or group. Some scholarships apply to general education (such as athletic scholarships), but usually a certain grade point average needs to be maintained to keep these types of scholarships.
For nursing students, the professional associations for your specialty may give scholarships to qualified individuals. For example, the Oncology Nursing Society offers scholarships to students pursuing a master's, doctorate or post-master’s certificate. Some of the best scholarship resources, however, can be religious organizations, private and public schools, small businesses, large corporations, community groups, generous individuals or philanthropic foundations.
For more information, visit these nursing scholarship resources:
- American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) financial aid resources:
http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Education/financialaid.htm#aacnresources - Scholarship searching resource:
http://www.scholarshipexperts.com/signup.jsp?sourceid=254868
Work-study programs help students finance their education by working in on-campus jobs, community-related jobs or assisting teachers. Work-study awards typically depend on factors such as level of financial need and school funding availability.
You can work with professors' on-campus or work with a nonprofit agency or public bureau off-campus. Often students choose work study programs that are related to their field of study which, not only helps them finance their education, but also gives them resume experience.
Work-study pays at least the federal minimum wage, and often more, depending on the skills and level of experience needed. You can indicate whether you want to be considered for work-study assistance when completing your FAFSA form.
For more information, visit these work-study resources:
- FAFSA application and information:
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ - Federal work-study information:
http://www.fsa4counselors.ed.gov/clcf/workstudy.html
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Nursing Scholarship Applications Sought
By Terri Hahn
Announcement: If you are interested in a Scholarship Directory that has been helping parents and students from various countries to find the best scholarships since 2003, Click Here!An act of love now fosters many acts of care as the Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship encourages East Texams to pursue a nursing career.
Applications for the scholarships are available through the Good Shepherd Medical Center-Marshall Hospital Foundation and must be received by Friday, May 15.
"The Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship has been established in 2003 in honor of Polly Cargill by her sons Jerry and Jack Cargill and their family," said Gayle Weinberg, director of the Marshall Hospital Foundation.
"They were so pleased with the level of her care that the memorials they were receiving for her were made into a scholarship fund," said Weinberg.
The Cargills have been longtime residents of Marshall and Harrison County. Jerry Cargill owns and has remodeled serveral downtown buildings. He is co-owner of the Hotel Marshall and was recently named the Greater Marshall Chamber of Commerce's 2008 Outstanding Citizen.
So far, 20 Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarships have been given to qualifying students over the past 7 years. Recipients are awarded $500 per semester or $1,000 per school year, and the funds may be used to pay for tuition, fees, uniforms, books or travel expenses.
Applicants must be full-time students with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher and be accepted into a clinical nursing program or a current nursing student in an accredited program.
The scholarships are a service to the hospital as well as the students.
"Scholarships will be awarded only to those persons who commit to one year of employment with Good Shepherd Medical Center-Marshall after graduation if there is a position available," Weinberg said.
Students who are awarded the scholarships are required to apply for employment each spring for the coming school year even if they are current recipients.
"It's just exciting to think that recipients of our scholarships are returning to work in Marshall," Weinberg said.
The goals of the scholarships are to help the nurses and bring quality care into the community.
"The scholarships help aspiring nurses achieve their dreams," said Weinberg. "They also nurture the growth of the nursing community in our hospital."
The success of the scholarships can be seen every day at Good Shepherd Medical Center-Marshall where nurses who have received the scholarships are tending patients and supporting doctors.
"It is truly exciting to walk down the hall and see someone who received a scholarship seven years ago," said Weinberg. "They are still here."
Past recipents of the scholarship have shared their joy with Weinberg saying, "I could not go to school if it were not for this scholarship.
"It is a favorite responsibility of mine, to help people receive these scholarships," said Weinberg.
A reception announcing recipients is usually held in early June, she said.
Applications are available at local schools or through the foundation's office.
For more information or to apply for a Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship, call 903-927-6982 or email gayle.weinberg@gsmcmarshall.org.
Article Source: Marshallnewsmessenger.com
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NurseTV
NurseTV is about real lives of nurses. You can checkout their website for TV listings in your area. You can also watch some of their videos online.
http://www.nursetv.com/videos/
Male Nurses Outnumbered
Anne Kelly
Men may make up half the population, but in nursing, they fill only 6% of the positions across the country. It isn`t quite clear why so few men are passing up the nursing profession, but the ones who choose it as a career have a lot in common. At Medcenter One and at others hospitals across the country studies show many male nurses flock to similar areas of nursing.
"Operating room, emergency room, psych; those are places often you would see male nurses," says Mary Smith, the Director of Student Services for the Medcenter One College of Nursing.
She says it would be nice if more than 7% of the 650 nurses at Medcenter One were male. The hospital may see a higher ratio in the future as the number of men enrolling in the the College of Nursing has begun to increase slightly in the past ten years. The University of Mary says the number of male students it enrolls has remained pretty steady despite stereotypes that depict nursing as a career for women.
"I don`t really find it any different being in a class where there`s only 4 males and 60 females. It`s just another class," says Gregg Springan, 21.
He`s known he`s wanted to be a nurse since he was 17 and says he hasn`t felt any stigma about his career choice. Instead he`s just felt support from those around him. Indeed a strong support system is a common thread among many males nurses, according to U Mary associate professor Julie Klein. She`s been studying the presence of men in nursing.
"These students and the men who are nurses are very very strong. They`ve got strong skills, they persevere, they want to do this, they usually have strong support from their family."
Gregg has another year of schooling left. Once he graduates, he wants to become an intensive care nurse, which studies show is one of those fields a lot of male nurses choose.
Going along with how strong willed and hardworking Klein says her studies show male nurses are, Gregg was recently named the University of Mary`s Student Nurse of the Year. He`s also planning to intern at the Mayo Clinic this summer.
Article Source: Kfyrtv.com
American Nurses Association
The American Nurses Association (ANA) is the only full-service professional organization representing the interests of the nation's 2.9 million registered nurses (RNs) through its 51 constituent member nurses associations, its 23 organizational affiliates, and its workforce advocacy affiliate, the Center for American Nurses. The ANA advances the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the rights of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Congress and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.
Go to the ANA website or play the video "Discover Your ANA" below.
Discover Your ANA video or Discover Your ANA Video [wmv]
Nursing Scholarships and Grants
How Financial Aid Can Help Pay for Your Nursing School
Announcement: If you are interested in a Scholarship Directory that has been helping parents and students from various countries to find the best scholarships since 2003, Click Here!Many scholarship and grant opportunities are available to nursing students to encourage people to enter the nursing field and help alleviate the increasing nursing shortages. With a little research, you can learn how to obtain this free money for your nursing school education.
Uncovering these funding sources can help free you from financial worries, and instead let you dedicate your efforts toward your schooling. The following five tips can help start your nursing scholarship and grant search and guide you in the application process.
Tip #1: Complete a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
Based on details you provide in your FAFSA, the US Department of Education produces a report that estimates your expected contribution toward college costs and indicates the types and amounts of financial aid for which you are eligible.
Each year that you want to receive financial aid for your schooling, you should submit a FAFSA. Your financial circumstances may change from year to year, making you eligible for additional assistance as you progress through college.
Tip #2: Research Funding Sources on a Regular Basis
Scholarships become available throughout the year. Set a recurring time in your schedule to research nursing school scholarship and grant options. You can start with your school's career center—discuss your goals with a career counselor who's familiar with the field or spend time looking through the valuable career resources available.
Another good place to start looking is the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). Along with an abundance of nursing career information, this group posts announcements for grants, scholarships, fellowships and other funding sources for nursing students. For details, visit AACN.
You should also inquire about nursing scholarships and grants at the colleges you are interested in attending. You may find alumnae or professional groups that offer scholarships specifically to students attending the college you have chosen.
Your search should continue throughout your college career, because your eligibility may change as your experience and level of education change.
Tip #3: Expand Your Scholarship Eligibility
Extracurricular activities at school and your community involvement efforts can play an important role in your search for nursing scholarships. Such activities reflect well on application essays, because they demonstrates your well-rounded background. Not to mention, you may meet teachers, parents and other organizational leaders who can recommend you for scholarships or inform you of available opportunities.
Additionally, your parents or other relatives may belong to clubs or be employed by businesses that offer scholarships to family members. Explore every avenue available—you never know where you might discover a source to help fund your nursing school education.
Tip #4: Craft an Exceptional Scholarship Application Essay
Your essay represents you better than any other piece of your nursing scholarship application and can boost your edge against the competition. Use these hints to make the most of your essay:
Assume your audience will skim, so create a strong introduction that inspires essay reviewers to keep reading.
Answer the essay question thoughtfully. Your readers are looking for an insightful and focused response to the essay question.
Keep it personal and write with sincerity and individuality. You want your readers to establish a personal relationship with you.
Use natural language and a professional tone. Write clearly and concisely, paying attention to spelling and grammar. A high quality essay will reflect well on your own personal qualities.
Leave time for editing and revision. Ask a teacher, parents or others whose opinions could improve the quality of your writing to review your essay.
Tip #5: Explore Internships and Other Practical Opportunities
Working in the nursing field, anything from an unpaid internship to a paid position, can lend volumes to your efforts to get nursing school scholarships. Not only will you gain insight to practical nursing career information, but the experience will enhance the content of your application essays and demonstrate your dedication to the field.
In addition, your work experience can lead you toward a potential specialty area where you may find another set of scholarship opportunities. For example, groups such as the Oncology Nursing Society offer grants and scholarships to those who demonstrate a commitment to the field.
Read more from AllNursingSchools.com
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International Council of Nurses
The International Council of Nurses is a federation of national nurses’ associations (NNAs), representing nurses in more than 128 countries. Founded in 1899, ICN is the world’s first and widest reaching international organisation for health professionals. Operated by nurses for nurses, ICN works to ensure quality nursing care for all, sound health policies globally, the advancement of nursing knowledge, and the presence worldwide of a respected nursing profession and a competent and satisfied nursing workforce.
ICN is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. For further information on ICN structure, publications and activities, please visit the ICN website.
High-Tech Tools for Nurses
By Tracey Porpora
Today’s nurses have access to a wide array of high-tech products, systems and instruments that are helping them do their job more efficiently. “Technology is a tool to help improve the nursing practice…. Technology helps us work smarter and faster and prevent errors,” says Susan K. Newbold, PhD, RN-BC, FAAN, FHIMSS, an associate professor of nursing informatics at the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing in Nashville, Tenn.
Here are five new high-tech nursing favorites:
RP-7 Robot
Robotics aren’t just for surgery rooms anymore. A new model by InTouch Health is being used in hospital units. This wireless, human-sized robot can follow nurses through the hallways of the hospital. And, while the physician is actually seated in front of a computer, he or she can interact with patients, family members and other healthcare professionals anywhere in the hospital. “This machine has a computer monitor as the head of the robot. But when you look at it, you’ll see the head of the person you’re communicating with,” says Newbold. “If the nurse needs to access a physician at home, he or she can dial into the robot and connect with the healthcare professionals through the RP-7 Robot.” The RP-7 Remote Presence System is built on InTouch Health’s “Virtually There” interactive technology, which integrates digital cameras, audio microphones, amplification circuitry and custom software to create two-way, audio-video communications.
Rad-57 Pulse CO-Oximetry™
This fairly new portable device from Masimo can help detect carbon monoxide poisoning in a patient. The Rad-57 is a handheld Signal Extraction Pulse CO-Oximeter(TM) that uses a sensor clipped onto a patient’s finger to measure the percentage of hemoglobin bound to carbon monoxide. “Before we had this technology, patients [with carbon monoxide poisoning] would come into the emergency room complaining of flu-like symptoms, headaches or blurred vision [and often be misdiagnosed],” says Mary Russell, Ed.D, MSN, a certified emergency nurse at Boca Raton Community Hospital in Boca Raton, Fla. “Carbon monoxide poisoning is missed in emergency rooms 30-to-50 percent of the time. This has helped change that.”
Electronic Health Records
Modern technology has allowed patients’ information to be consolidated and immediately available to healthcare professionals with just a click of a mouse. Several companies have devised electronic records systems that allow all members of a healthcare facility access to the same medical records instantaneously. “This includes everything from chart notes to immunization records,” says Julia Gunther, RN, office supervisor of Summit Medical Group in Berkeley Heights, N.J. Gunther says electronic health records have enhanced her office’s “continuity of care…. there isn’t a delay where nurses have to wait for a patient’s chart.”
The SimMan
This life-sized, technologically-advanced human simulator is used to teach nursing students valuable care-giving and medical techniques. “The SimMan allows for hands-on learning for nurses,” says Cindy Iavagnilio, MSN, RN, CRNA, assistant professor of nursing at Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, Ind. “It can talk and be programmed to have normal and abnormal breath sounds, normal and abnormal heart sounds, blood pressures and ECG rhythms,” says Iavagnilio. “It can be hooked up to monitors and devices, IV lines, nasogastric tubes and practically anything else you wish to add to the scenario. The SimMan has been proven effective in teaching communication skills, teamwork, critical thinking and clinical skills.”
Barcode Medication Administration System
This hand-held PDA device allows nurses to instantly read all patients' medication at their bedside. Patients wear bar-coded identification bracelets so a nurse can “scan the patient” and receive all the necessary medication information. “This helps ensure the patient’s safety,” says Beth Kilmoyer, MS, RN, BC, informatics project manager at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Md. “After scanning the medication, the barcode system makes sure the right patient is receiving the right drug, at the right dose, in the right route, at the right time.”
Article Source: NurseTV.com
Men in Nursing
Male nurses are becoming more prevalent in the nursing community.
With the current nursing shortage and demand for qualified nurses, the health care industry is hiring nurses, and they're not just hiring women. Male nursing is becoming more and more popular and for good reason—there are many opportunities and good pay.
Read the question and answer below to learn more about male nursing and whether it is the right career move for you:
What percentage of American nurses are men?
According to the National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses, approximately 5.4 percent of American RNs are men. The number of male students in nursing schools is on the rise, however, which should allow greater numbers of men to enter the nursing profession in the future.
Why would I want to be a nurse?
Contrary to what you may think, nurses have unlimited opportunities for career development. Do you want to work in a challenging, fast-paced environment? Critical care nurses and military nurses have some of the most demanding and interesting jobs available. Want to be on the cutting edge of science? Nurse researchers and practitioners often have opportunities to employ the latest medical technologies. Interested in a career in business that incorporates your desire to improve patient quality of life? Consider a joint MSN/MBA. Need to work different shifts to spend time you're your family? Many nurses are not constrained by the 9-to-5 work shift that others must accept.
Many nurses, male and female, enjoy the amount of time that they can spend with patients on a daily basis. Nurses can work with any social group in countless settings, from county general hospitals to private family practices. Nurses become trusted members of their communities and their patients look to them for medical advice. Increasingly, doctors and nurses view each other as peers in the health care field; nurses are respected members of the profession who bring their own unique experiences to the field.
What are schools doing to recruit male nurses?
Schools value a diverse student body that encompasses all cultures and genders; consequently, many work hard to dismantle stereotypes that view nursing as a female profession. Many doctors are women and a growing number of nurses are men, but the acceptance of male nurses has not filtered into mainstream society yet.
As a result, school brochures, textbooks and classroom materials are being updated to appeal to male and female students. Changes may be as simple as changing the photos in an informational brochure to ones that reflect diversity, or they may be more difficult to enact: many male nurses feel that they are less welcome in women's obstetrics clinics and are challenging administrators to give them an equal opportunity.
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How can I cope?
The demands are too great and the workers too few:
How can I cope?
When I worked at the hospital part time, I never had a clue of what to expect when I went to work. Each time there were different patients on the unit. Sometimes it was like walking into a nightmare with all the needs and responsibilities hitting me at once as I tried to assess the situation and meet the most urgent needs first. Sometimes they all seemed urgent.
I always wondered as I prepared for work what I would face. Would there be enough time to provide the care I had been trained to give? Would there be patients whose demands for lesser needs stole time I needed for patients with more critical needs? Would some of my patients "go bad" or even die?
Would I leave work at the end of my shift feeling I had accomplished something and met the needs I was assigned to? Or would I go away feeling beaten, defeated, inadequate because the demands were too great and the workers to few?
At the clinic there are different stresses. Our multi-specialty clinic went through a major change as it was bought out by a large corporation, then sold 4 years later. Many of the physicians are now in a medical foundation of a local hospital. Others, like the one I work for, decided to go independent.
This brought new stresses. The disorganization of change was difficult as we worked through the initial steps of going solo. The demands of a fast-paced office with a minimal staff continues to be trying at times.
No matter where we work, nursing is hard. How can we cope?
Sometimes I don't cope so well. But here are some things I try to do:
I determine to keep a positive attitude. Not only will I be happier, but so will my patients and co-workers.
I commit myself to doing my best with what I have to work with.
I try to spend a few minutes relaxing before I go to work. This way I don't feel I am going straight from the "taking care of things at home" job into a second job.
As I walk across the parking lot toward my workplace, I ask God to not give me more than I can handle. I remember that he is able to help me through any situation I will face today.
Article Source: CareNurse.com
We Need More Male Nurses
We need more male nurses in primary care
by Rosemary Cook 16-Mar-09
In pursuit of the fascinating history of community nursing, as part of the district nursing anniversary celebrations this year, we have been looking at men. Specifically (of course) male district nurses.
It seems that nursing was principally a male occupation until Florence Nightingale championed the idea of nursing as work not only suitable for women, but in fact requiring many traditionally female attributes.
It was the 1930s before male nurses were being trained and registered, and in the 1940s, the QNI trained its first male district nurses. Though many of them reported being mistaken for gasmen, plumbers or even intruders on their first visit, we have found no record of patients being anything other than pleased with their male district nurses.
Today, according to recent research, around 5 per cent of the community nursing workforce is male. This compares with 10-18 per cent of the general nursing workforce, depending on which figures you read. In addition, there are very few male practice nurses. More worryingly, recent figures published by a London University suggest that there has been a recent decrease in male applicants to nursing undergraduate courses.
It would be a shame if the limited gender diversity of nursing went into reverse, and patients were deprived of the skills, attributes and expertise of this part of the workforce. Surely primary care can provide the 'magnet' jobs that will attract and keep male nurses in the workforce?
The variety, challenge and complexity of community-based roles should appeal to any ambitious nurse. The new emphasis on business skills, enterprise and nurse-led services offers something different alongside the traditional role, tempting a new generation of young people of both genders into primary care.
Meanwhile, male nurses currently working in primary care are well represented among QNI project leaders: maybe we should be featuring them in a poster campaign to recruit their colleagues out of the hospital sector. If they arrive on time and don't charge their patients, they are hardly likely to be mistaken for the gasman.
- Rosemary Cook, director, Queen's Nursing Institute.
Article Source: Healthcarerepublic.com
Nursing Voices
Nursing Talk from Around the World
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New Forum About Overseas Jobs For Doctors and Nurses
Calls for Stories From Nurses
Student Nurse
Nursing as a Second Career
By Charles Nguyen
With job security now in question throughout the United States, the dependability of employment in nursing fields is often payment enough in itself. Needs for capable employees in health care are so strong and steady that more job-seekers are joining the burgeoning flock of second-career nurses.
"Given the growing demand for health care, nursing is a secure profession," says Robert Rosseter, associate executive director of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). He highlighted recent projections from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which found in its November 2007 Labor Review that more than one million new and replacement nurses will be needed by 2016.
"[The statistics make] nursing the nation's top profession in terms of projected job growth," Rosseter says.
The demand for nurses is so great that it attracts prospective recruits from a number of other fields in the workforce. Across the nation, accelerated academic programs for potential nurses seeking a career change are ramping up enrollment. In 2007, nearly 10,000 students enrolled in accelerated baccalaureate programs, according to AACN's annual survey. That level is a 14-percent increase from 2006 and a 21-percent increase from 2005.
The average wage for RNs is also a large attractor. Career Web site Payscale.com pegs the wage of an RN with less than a year of experience at $44,285.
The mid-career shift into nursing seems daunting, but most second-career nursing programs have found that students utilize their non-health care experiences.
Annie Abalos' first experiences in higher education marked her for the business world. After attaining a bachelor's degree in business administration from University of San Diego, Abalos spent three years as a marketing representative. The national need for nurses and her own need to pursue more a fulfilling, longer-term career led her to nursing. She is now 10 months into a 15-month program to receive her bachelor's of science in nursing at California State University, Bakersfield.
Abalos was particularly moved by the alarming needs of modern-day healthcare. A March 2008 report entitled The Future of the Nursing Workforce in the United States: Data, Trends and Implications by Peter I. Buerhaus, PhD, RN, FAAN, et. al. found that the demand for RNs is expected to grow by 2 to 3 percent each year.
"I don't regret not pursuing nursing from the start," Abalos says. "Business school helped me become a leader and to speak my thoughts [while] my marketing job helped me to learn to deal with people from all walks of life."
During his treatment for testicular cancer, Bill Kenny, a second-career nurse at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles, decided to leave his position as a television writer-producer for shows like "Blossom," "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" and "Big Brother" to pursue nursing.
"After sitting behind my computer alone for years as a writer, I really wanted a chance to interact with people in a meaningful way," says Kenny. "I was drawn to the world of health care where people are dealing with very real life and death issues."
But, Kenny acknowledges his career change was not without hardships. "The biggest obstacles were all the pre-requisite courses I needed to take [during nursing school]," says Kenny, who has been a nurse for more than three years. "I had never taken science classes in college, so I had to start from the beginning."
But second-career nurses don't necessarily restart with a blank slate, according to Rosseter. In fact, they are often more appealing because of their past experiences.
"Second-career nurses possess many layers of education and experience that enrich their nursing practice," says Rosseter. "For example, nurses with a corporate background may gravitate toward positions in management where their expertise in both patient care and business are highly prized. Nurses with liberal arts backgrounds can use their creativity to enhance care delivery and better communicate with patients from diverse backgrounds. The combinations are endless, and they can all be channeled into providing expert patient care."
Article Source: NurseTV.com
New Nursing Schools Struggle - Part 2
Licensing exam pass rates of nursing schools in Nevada.
(click on the picture below for a larger view)
NURSING PROGRAM CHANGES
A sampling of improvements new nursing programs have made:
APOLLO COLLEGE
• Opened a simulation lab where students work with high-tech mannequins that exhibit “symptoms” of illnesses.
• Provided new and expanded practice tests.
• The school experienced high turnover in the past, with four permanent or interim nursing directors since its inception and some faculty leaving mid-semester. But no full-time nursing faculty members have left since the current director started in July.
NEVADA STATE COLLEGE
• Began requiring applicants to earn a 3.0 grade-point average in nursing prerequisites instead of a 2.5.
• Began requiring students to review material using programs created by nursing education resource company MEDS Publishing that ask questions of the type students see on the licensure test.
• Revised curriculum.
TOURO UNIVERSITY
• Began using MEDS Publishing products to reinforce students’ knowledge.
• Placed increased emphasis on encouraging students to take the licensure test soon after graduation.
• Revised curriculum.
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN NEVADA
• Began requiring cumulative finals in courses instead of a midterm and final dealing with separate material.
• Began requiring applicants to complete a test assessing academic skills. Began giving applicants credit in the admissions process for high science grades.
• Interviewed former students to identify the program’s perceived strengths and weaknesses.
SOURCE: Each college provided its own information.
Article Source: LasVegasSun.com
New Nursing Schools Struggle - Part 1
Reforms are under way to help Nevada programs, students make the grade.
By Charlotte Hsu
Nevada’s nursing shortage is one of the nation’s worst. So it should come as good news that four nursing schools launched over the past six years are now producing about a quarter of the state’s prospective registered nurses.
These new programs have struggled, however, to adequately prepare students for the licensure exam they must pass to obtain employment in nursing.
In 2008, nearly half the graduates of Apollo College and the University of Southern Nevada who took the test for the first time failed.
Statistics were less grim for Touro University and Nevada State College. Eighty percent of first-time candidates passed, the minimum the State Nursing Board requires for teaching programs to obtain full approval. Touro’s pass rate the previous year, the first in which its graduates took the exam, was a dismal 57 percent. Nevada State College had missed the 80 percent goal for three consecutive years.
Across the country, new schools often have trouble meeting standards. But in Arizona and California, few have logged pass rates as low as Nevada’s newest programs have.
Debra Scott, the Nevada Nursing Board’s executive director, says Apollo and the University of Southern Nevada — whose nursing programs opened in 2007 and 2006, respectively — should view graduates’ performance on the licensure test as problematic. Pass rates, she says, are an indicator of a program’s quality.
“It is the board’s role to protect the public, which includes all citizens of Nevada,” Scott says. “If students are not getting quality education, they (may) not be quality nurses.”
Prompted by those concerns, board staff will, beginning this year, visit campuses every 18 months to gauge whether programs with provisional approval are following policies and supporting students.
High failure rates on the licensure exam can pose problems for hospitals, which hire recent graduates with interim permits to work as nurses. Most facilities commit to keeping these employees even if they fail the test, but must shift them to different positions if that happens, says Vickie Wright, the Nevada Hospital Association’s nurse executive.
Nationwide, about 87 percent of first-time candidates passed the exam in 2008. In Nevada, more-established programs at six public colleges and universities had rates of at least 84 percent last year, though some struggled to meet goals in the recent past.
Problems at some of the new nursing schools include high turnover in faculty and administration (Touro and Apollo have each had four permanent or interim nursing directors); inexperienced teachers; troubles with curriculum; lax admission requirements; and students who put off taking the National Council Licensure Examination. Officials at some nursing schools say that candidates who test soon after graduation are more likely to pass.
Apollo reported to the state nursing board in April that after discovering one clinical instructor’s license was expired and another did not have at least a bachelor’s degree in nursing, the school was tracking license expiration dates and verifying new hires’ credentials.
Nevada State, which offers a two-year nursing program and an accelerated one-year program, reported to the nursing board in October that just 19 of 40 students entering the regular program in spring 2007 were still enrolled. A nursing school task group is focusing on retention.
Directors of all four new programs say improvements are on the way.
Apollo opened a lab in 2008 where students can work with high-tech dummies that exhibit “symptoms” of illnesses. The University of Southern Nevada modified entrance requirements, asking applicants to complete an exam assessing their academic aptitude, and awarding them for high marks in science courses.
Both the programs are tailoring students’ preparation for the licensure test toward individual needs.
At Nevada State College, similar changes are apparently paying off. The school’s pass rate for first-time test takers has ticked upward every year since 2005, when it was 62.5 percent.
The college increased nursing admissions standards a few years ago and recently began requiring students to use a review program that asks questions of the type they will see on the national licensure exam.
After Nevada State missed the state board’s 80 percent target for two straight years, a consultant suggested a temporary enrollment cap, more faculty development, and curriculum revisions including increasing students’ training in adult health nursing. The college adopted the recommendations.
Touro also retooled its curriculum and began using new remediation tools to reinforce students’ knowledge. Teachers have increased efforts to “emphasize critical thinking and application of content, rather than regurgitation,” the school informed the nursing board in a written report in October. In that report, Touro said students were memorizing to pass exams rather than studying to understand concepts.
Despite challenges, 17 of 21 spring 2008 nursing graduates said in a survey that they agreed, strongly agreed or somewhat agreed that they would choose Touro again if they could start over.
Cory Hatch, the elected president of Touro’s student nurses association, says he is satisfied with the school, even though other students complain broadly about the quality of their education. Hatch lauds faculty members for maintaining an “open-door” policy.
His comments echo those of Anna Friday, who graduated from Apollo in November 2008 and passed the licensure exam on her first try. Friday, now a nurse at North Vista Hospital, says Apollo had a “family feel.”
She says high turnover in faculty and administration bothered some classmates, but “I succeeded because of Apollo. (Teachers) put in the effort, they offered time before or after school.”
Robyn Nelson, health and human services dean and acting nursing director at Touro, says she wishes the nursing board would consider more than just first-time pass rates. “Often,” she says, “students have anxiety the first time they take the exam.”
In Nevada, candidates can sit for the licensure test three times before having to undergo remediation. Touro’s pass rate for November 2007 graduates rises to 97 percent when those who failed once but successfully repeated the test are included.
Pass rates for the first classes to finish at Apollo and the University of Southern Nevada also exceed 90 percent when repeat candidates are wrapped in.
Some states, such as Arizona, which expects 75 percent of graduates from each program who take the exam within 12 months of graduation to pass on the first try, have standards less stringent than Nevada. Nursing boards across the country use the first-time pass rate to judge colleges.
“It’s important because that’s probably the most direct reflection of the quality of the program” in terms of preparing the student for the national licensure exam, says Pam Randolph, the Arizona State Nursing Board’s associate director for education and evidence-based regulation. Repeat test takers’ success, in contrast, often reflects remediation they seek outside of school, she says.
Article Source: LasVegasSun.com
Male Nurses Become More Prevalent
You've Come a Long Way, Mister
Men are slowly becoming more prevalent on nursing floors
From Our Print Archives
Vol. 8 •Issue 2 • Page 14
By Nick Schaefer and Tom Kerr
Picture this: You're a student completing your final clinical at an acute care facility. It's time to put classroom knowledge to use and soak up every experience to prepare for your career.
You've learned a lot from your supervisor and have had multiple opportunities to see patients with various diagnoses. The one thing you haven't witnessed is an actual childbirth.
When that day arrives, your instructor invites fellow students to the mother and baby unit, but as you make your way down the hallway, she pulls you aside.
"I'm sorry," the instructor says, "you can't go in there. But don't worry; we'll make another accommodation for you."
"Why am I being excluded from the group?" you ask. "Am I not performing as expected? Have you received a patient complaint about me?"
"No. In fact, you're performing quite well," the instructor says. "But I'm afraid your presence may cause distress to the female patients."
Such a scenario was typically the norm for male PN students 20 years ago. While such barriers have since dissipated, ADVANCE recently asked long-time male LPNs about their experiences and how the profession can help boost the number of men in the profession.
Making Their Way
Greg Howard, LPN, has built an impressive résumé in his 25 years of practical nursing. He served two terms as president of NFLPN and is currently president of his state's affiliate organization the Alabama Federation of LPNs. He has also represented LPNs on the Alabama Board of Nursing, is a leading advocate in national smoking cessation programs and is a nurse leader at Tuscaloosa Veterans Administration Medical Center (TVAMC).
However, on his way to realizing his career dreams, Howard encountered many bumps along the road, starting as a PN student at Shelton State Community College in Tuscaloosa, AL, in the early 1980s.
"Aside from me, there was one other man in a class of about 30 students," Howard recalled. "We knew we were outnumbered, but I wouldn't say I wasn't treated as an equal among my peers."
But there were differences in how the male students were taught, he said. For instance, Howard was prohibited from going to an obstetrics unit during clinical experience despite doing the same preparatory coursework as his female counterparts.
"Some people were receptive to letting men in OBs and some weren't," recalled Howard. "It just meant that we had to practice in our labs or study the female anatomy other ways, such as with mannequins."
Around the same time Howard was attending Shelton State, Michael Robinson, LPN, was making his way through PN school at Kalamazoo Valley Community College in Michigan. While his education experience was mostly positive, there were constant reminders that he was about to enter a female-dominated profession.
"Most educational materials were oriented to females," Robinson recalled. "Every picture seemed to identify the female nurse as the caring individual, while the patient was always a male in need of care. Professors also utilized female pronouns when discussing nurses."
As one of only three males in his 30-student class at Sacred Heart School of Practical Nursing, Norristown, PA, Jim Kinsey stood out when he attended the school in 1991.
"In the clinical rotation I don't remember female nurses being overly excited about having men in class," he said. "The maternity rotation was most difficult for me. There wasn't a whole lot I was allowed to do. I was involved much more in post-delivery than anything else. It became awkward."
Men At Work
Things didn't get easier for Kinsey when he entered the nursing field, where old stereotypes regarding men in nursing died hard. This was especially true in working with older adults in long-term care.
"I remember introducing myself as a nurse to an older resident," he recalled. "She said, 'your mother must be so disappointed in you.' I guess she thought I should've been a doctor."
Robinson can relate. Even today, he said, some view male nurses as those who settled for working in the field after failing to achieve higher goals.
"Some patients have said to me, 'You're the nurse? How come you never went to medical school to be a doctor?'" he said. "Some people assume that men are doctors and women are nurses."
Such gender biases weren't evident among the fellow nurses he worked with through the years, Robinson said. On the contrary, at his nursing job, he remembers often being called on to assist his female counterparts.
"I was the only male nurse on that floor for about 2 years and I was often asked to help other nurses lift and transport patients," he said. "At first, I didn't mind doing this because it made me feel needed and accepted, but after a while it became burdensome. I was run ragged trying to help other nurses that I couldn't get my own work done."
After consistently getting behind on his charting, Robinson said he began to focus more on his own patients than being a helper for everyone else. Eventually, he explained to his co-workers that his work was suffering because he was doing too much for others.
"I think they began to understand my situation."
But the real change came when he defended his fellow nurses in front of a demanding MD.
"The doctor was having them get coffee and doing other things that really wasn't part of their job responsibilities," Robinson said. "He was taking advantage of them, so I confronted him about the issue. That day, I became a real part of the nursing team."
That Was Then, This Is Now
Robinson went on to establish a solid career in practical nursing. A sergeant major in the Army, he has led the military member contingent of NFLPN for several years and currently sits on the federation's board of directors.
Kinsey also developed his expertise in geriatrics and now helps long-term care administrators across the nation make substantial changes to their facilities as senior consultant and director of development for the Institute for Caregiver Education. The Pennsylvania-based not-for-profit organization provides continuing education and professional development opportunities for healthcare professionals. He also keeps his nursing skills up to date by working part-time at Bethany Village, Mechanicsburg, PA.
And today, Howard, Kinsey and Robinson are no longer such a rarity on the nursing floor. For instance, according to ADVANCE's 2006 salary survey, 8 percent of respondents were men, compared to 5 percent just 2 years earlier.
"The situation has changed a lot," Robinson said. "Overall, the numbers are still disproportionate, but more males are choosing nursing because the profession is very flexible. I feel most male nurses are pretty much well-respected by their female counterparts. You don't feel the stigma like you used to."
That stigma mostly involves being perceived as feminine because you work in a female-dominated profession, he added.
"In the past, male nurses were considered 'soft' or people questioned your sexuality," Robinson said. "I have to admit, I was a little reluctant about entering nursing because of these stereotypes; but when I ended up joining the military I found there was a real need for nurses. It was one of the reasons I decided to join the profession."
To entice more men into nursing, healthcare leaders are trying to build on the unique contributions of the male nurse, said Thomas Czaplijski, MS, RN, vice president of physician support and clinical innovation for Pitt County Memorial Hospital, Greenville, NC, part of the University Health Systems of Eastern Carolina.
Czaplijski was chief of nursing at Pitt County Memorial when the facility received the 2006 Best Workplace for Men in Nursing award from the American Assembly for Men in Nursing (AAMN). He believes a major reason his facility won the award was due to the hospital's involvement in creating a local AAMN chapter at Eastern Carolina University.
This initiative created an avenue for male nurses to discuss their careers and build networking opportunities, Czaplijski said.
"These groups encourage men to believe in themselves," he said. "Men can share their experiences of being nurses and seek advice from one another."
Through its Healthcare Careers Academy, University Health Systems' officials are also trying to boost the numbers of minority male nurses by providing community outreach programs to local secondary schools, Czaplijski added.
"As part of this strategy we send male nurses out on these engagements to be role models and talk about their careers," he explained. "This sends a message that it is 'OK to be a man in nursing' and to consider it for a career no matter who you are."
The academy allows some students to visit the hospitals and see the nurses in action.
These programs have paid off for Pitt County Memorial Hospital. Currently, 12-15 percent of its nursing staff is male.
"It has been a little discouraging that the national percentage hasn't changed much over the years," said Czaplijski. "But I think our example shows that if you put effort into it and have the right programs in place, we can all encourage more men to consider nursing as a career and excel in it once they get into nursing."
Future Prognosis
Howard applauds such efforts and believes more healthcare entities need to develop programs to entice men into nursing.
"Institutions are going to have to change the way they market nursing to men," he said. "They need to be explicit about everything so males can actually see the advantages to being a nurse. They need to show the benefits of the profession, beyond the money — that nursing is a valuable career choice and we do make a difference."
Robinson agrees.
"There really is a need for men in nursing," he said. "It's important to have a diversified staff so facilities can provide different perspectives to patient care. I think those things need to be highlighted and nursing should also be presented for what it is: a job that offers a lot of career advancement."
Tom Kerr is editor and Nick Schaefer is a former assistant editor at ADVANCE.
Video Chronicles Men in Nursing
Producers of a documentary are hoping their work will help encourage more men to choose nursing as a career.
"Career Encounters: Men in Nursing," is a 30-minute video recently produced by the American Assembly of Men in Nursing (AAMN). The program features male nurses from across the U.S., including student nurses, nurse educators, nurse anesthetists and a U.S. Army nurse treating soldiers wounded in Iraq.
The program includes ample "action" footage to give viewers a sense of the work nurses do, AAMN officials said. The men featured in the DVD explain why they chose nursing, what obstacles they face in a predominately female profession, how their career paths are unfolding and the rewards of being nurses.
"This DVD is a terrific program that will motivate men to consider the possibilities of a rewarding career in nursing," said Terry Wicks, CRNA, president of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA), which helped fund the project. "There is absolutely nothing more satisfying than participating in the physical healing of another human being. I couldn't be more pleased with the path my professional life has taken."
The DVD is available from AANA by calling 847-655-1129 or visiting the AAMN Web site at www.aamn.org.
Article Source: lpn.advanceweb.com
Womens Interest in Male Nurses
Join Allnurses.com discussion forum on Women's interest in male nurses to participate in the discussions and discover what people of the opposite sex are saying.
Welcome in Men in Nursing Field
Men becoming welcome in nursing field
By ROB NOVIT Senior writer
For 10 years Allan Knight worked as a mechanic but began to worry about his industry's future.
He decided to enroll at USC Aiken's School of Nursing, choosing not to mention it to his co-workers, concerned they might give him grief about working in a profession dominated by women.
"I was nervous about starting here," Knight said during a conference at USCA Tuesday - "Recruitment and Retention of Men in Nursing School." "Now that I'm here, I don't have the gender concerns. I feel I've accomplished a lot."
The conference attracted USCA students, Aiken Technical College, Newberry College and Greenville Technical College faculty and students and counselors from area high schools.
Only about 10 percent of the 200 nursing students at USCA are men. USCA professor Dr. Maggie Dorsey has worked on the workshop for about two years. Last summer she published a children's book on the subject, titled, "My Hero, My Dad the Nurse."
If she had the chance to talk with high school males about the nursing profession, "I'd tell them it's a wonderful career with many opportunities. I would encourage them, but would also tell them it's a lot of hard work with a science-based curriculum."
Guest speaker Chad O'Lynn, a University of Portland professor and author, said more men are needed to help counter a nursing shortage, but also to provide a diversification of the workforce.
"Yet not everybody is on board with this," said O'Lynn. "The stereotypes are that men are not good nurturers or that their entry into nursing is more about devious intent or just wanting a good job."
Andy Bolin studied engineering at the University of South Carolina, then returned to college at USCA for a nursing degree.
"It's an opportunity to help people when they need it most," he said. "It's a cliche, but it's about getting into this profession to make a difference."
Bolin and Wright acknowledged they never considered nursing throughout high school. The stereotyping would have steered Bolin away at that age.
Few male students ever mention nursing during career discussions, said Aubrey Pompey, an Aiken High School guidance counselor. "They don't see many male nurses, and we don't talk about it a lot," Pompey said. "But this conference brings it to a consciousness level in terms of job security and need. Nursing can also open some doors for other opportunities."
USCA junior Ken Kennedy is a traditional student and didn't hesitate about getting into the nursing school.
"I knew the sexual connotation that most nurses are female," said Kennedy, who wants to go into psychiatric nursing. "It's a great field to go into, where you can learn about adult health, medical/surgical and other things you can use throughout your career."
There should be no distinction between male and female nurses, said nursing program dean Dr. Julia Ball. They should just be nurses.
"This is the biggest workshop we've ever had," she said. "We wanted to showcase our school and at the same time educate all the schools as well as the students."
Contact Rob Novit at rnovit@aikenstandard.com.
Article Source: aikenstandard.com
Nursing School to Receive $1 Million
Nursing school to receive $1 million from fed funds
Kendyl Sebesta/Staff Writer
The Texas Tech Anita Thigpen Perry School of Nursing received $1 million in federal funding Tuesday, a part of the nearly $14.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds released to Texas.
Alexia Green, dean of the Tech School of Nursing, said the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is part of a federal initiative to provide health access point grant funding to health centers across the nation.
"We submitted a grant proposal in the spring of last year and got the highest score in the state on it," she said. "At the time, they said they didn't have the money to fund the grant, but with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds available, we got a little over $1 million for the grant for over two years."
Green said the Tech School of Nursing in collaboration with the Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center will receive federal funding during the two-year period.
"The funding will allow the Combest Center to provide care to uninsured and underserved patients in East Lubbock and the community as a whole," she said. "Funding will also allow the Health Sciences Center to achieve Federally Qualified Health Center status too, which has been a goal of ours for seven years now."
According to the Health and Human Services Web site, Federally Qualified Health Centers are organizations which receive grants under the Public Health Services Act, qualify for certain reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid, and serve under-served areas or populations.
Green said receiving Federally Qualified Health Center status will allow the Combest Center to make improvements in services and staffing available to patients in East Lubbock as well.
"The Combest Center will probably be able to see double the amount of patients it has seen before and could expand its hours," she said. "That's really important to people in East Lubbock who are underserved already and largely uninsured."
According to the Tech Health Sciences Center Web site, the Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center is a non-profit clinic operated by the Tech School of Nursing that provides care to under-served patients in East Lubbock.
The Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center was not immediately available for comment.
William Davis, federal affairs assistant to Tech HSC President Dr. John Baldwin, said the funding received by the Health Sciences Center is designed specifically for under-served populations and to create a large health care work force.
"The grant money will be used to meet certain parameters like rural health projects," Davis said, "and will act to serve populations that typically do not have access, or limited access, to health care."
Davis said the Health Sciences Center as a whole can receive funds similar to those the School of Nursing obtained and is still in the process of determining the specific areas to allocate the funds toward.
According to the American Investment and Recovery Act Web site, $155 million in authorized funds were released Tuesday to support 126 new health centers in the United States.
Of the $155 million in the AIRA funds released Tuesday, Texas received $14.5 million to be divided among 12 health centers in the state, the Health and Human Service Web site reported, while projecting a total of 415 Texas jobs to be created as a result of the divided money.
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Article Source: dailytoreador.com
Nursing Degrees at Malone
Learn about nursing degrees at Malone
CANTON -- The Malone University School of Nursing will host an information meeting on Thursday, April 2, in Mitchell Hall, room 201, and on Thursday, April 23, in Mitchell Hall's Fred F. Silk Auditorium.
The master's in nursing program will be discussed at 6 p.m., and bachelor's degree completion will be the topic at 7 p.m.
The Malone University School of Nursing is located in the newly constructed Regula Hall on the Malone University campus at 2600 Cleveland Ave. For more information or to make a reservation, call the school of nursing at 330-471-8166, or visit the Malone University Web site at www.malone.edu. Appointments may be scheduled for interested students unable to attend the information meeting.
The degree completion program offers registered nurses an opportunity to earn the bachelor of science in nursing degree in as little as 20 months. Classes meet once a week, plus clinical hours, with nursing credits transferable without testing. Prospective students may visit the campus and receive admission materials.
The master of science in nursing degree may be earned in 24 months. The lock-step program tracks are for clinical nurse specialist and family nurse practitioner. Most courses use a one-day-a-week schedule, plus clinical hours to qualify for the certification exams.
Article Source: the-press-news.com
Single Dad Nurses A Stable Future
By Michael Sasso -- msasso@tampatrib.com
TAMPA - After years of working in an underappreciated profession, nurses and nursing students have a new swagger in their steps.
"When I graduate, I know I will be able to get a job," said Johnny Blues, a nursing student at Hillsborough Community College who is entering the field at age 47.
Like many others, Blues is making a 180-degree career turn, partly because he wants a more satisfying profession and partly because of the security of a health care job. He currently works in product assembly, putting together unfinished barbecue grills, bicycles and furniture for stores and customers.
Across Florida, almost every industry has been touched by the recession. A few examples: construction jobs are down 15.6 percent over the past year, insurance agency and brokerage jobs are down 2.1 percent, and air transportation jobs are down 5.8 percent
Health care is starting to get hit, too, with small layoffs here and there, but overall it has been an island of stability. Between December 2007 and December 2008, Florida employment in health care and social assistance rose from 887,600 jobs to an estimated 924,800 jobs, a jump of 4.2 percent, according to data from the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation.
Nursing Schools Get Popular
With the increase in jobs has come an interest in health care careers, even though the number of job seekers still outstrips demand.
At BayCare Health System - which operates health care centers that include the St. Joseph's, St. Anthony's and Morton Plant hospital systems - the number of job applicants for all positions soared to 121,092 last year, up 55 percent from 2007, when it received 78,236 applications.
Nursing schools, too, are seeing more interest. At Hillsborough Community College, the number of applicants for its nursing program is up about 60 percent.
"My best guess is that, for an economy that's troubled, nursing is a stable career," said HCC's nursing program manager, Rise Sandrowitz.
For Blues, nursing couldn't be more of a shift.
A former infantryman who spent two of his four years in the Army in Germany, Blues left to become a product assembler, paid by the number of furniture or consumer goods he assembles. He never made a lot of money - in a good year he might earn $35,000 - but it generally paid the bills.
This year has been particularly tough. With the recession, stores haven't needed as much assistance assembling unfinished merchandise, and Blues figures his income has fallen 50 percent in the past six months. Complicating things, he is a single father with custody of a 15-year-old son.
One day, while coaching his son's soccer team, he began chatting with the parents of a boy on the team. Both were studying to become registered nurses.
"That planted a little seed right there," he said.
Juggling Job, School Costs
To him, nursing seemed a way to earn a professional wage in a rewarding field with a two-year degree. He enrolled at HCC and is paying the roughly $7,000 cost of the nursing program with student loans and a small federal grant.
He is heartened by the demand for nursing even in a recession, but is feeling the financial strain of paying for school while juggling cutbacks at his job, and is eagerly awaiting graduation in about a year. Recently, his bank cut the home equity line of credit that he occasionally tapped into.
"There's my graduation date, and I'm always weighing, 'Am I going to make it?'" he said.
The health care industry isn't immune to the recession. BayCare Health System continues to hire nurses, lab technicians and other workers, but it has few openings for support positions because employee turnover in areas such as IT and human resources is exceptionally low right now, said BayCare's communications director, Amy Lovett.
Hospital company HCA, which has nine hospitals in the Bay area, has had minor layoffs recently in various fields, but is still recruiting for registered nurses and highly skilled critical-care positions, an HCA spokeswoman said. Some hospitals and nursing recruiters say there are fewer winter residents in the Bay area this year, which is reducing the demand for nurses.
But some in the field know how lucky they are.
Blues has an infectious optimism that helps him fight off suggestions that he's too old to become a nurse.
"I've talked to people who say, 'Well, I'm too old.' And I say, 'Wait a minute, don't tell that to me.'"
Article Source: MSNBC
Proud To Serve
The Evolution of Male Army Nurse Corpse Officers
The passage of time changes everything and nothing. The Army Nurse Corps as we know it today strives to represent the values of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage. The Army Nurse Corps expresses these values of the Army through the motto “Ready, Caring and Proud.” The growth of the male nurse within the Army Nurse Corps identifies with these values. Male nurses have existed in the United States for nearly as long as female nurses. However, the government, the military and the public mostly ignored their existence. Their story speaks of a particular group’s resolve to attain professional stature and acceptance while serving their nation. Unpredictably, male nurses endured inequitable actions much as other minorities have. The following editorial offers a brief synopsis regarding the expansion of the Army Nurse Corps to an all gender organization.
On the 2nd of February 1901, the Nurse Corps (female) became a permanent corps of the Medical Department under the Army Reorganization Act passed by Congress. The number of “charter” members of the Nurse Corps is considered to be 202, all female. Yet, historical evidence places male contract nurses on many battlefields throughout the course of American History. As early as 1898, during the Spanish-American War, male nurses served and died as contract nurses in Cuba. Arlington National Cemetery interment documents confirm the burial of male contract nurses who died while serving their country during the Spanish-American War.
The male nurse actively sought service in WWI. A memorandum written by the Honorable Charles B. Smith, dated 13 April 1918, relays the presence of seven male nurses at Base Hospital #25 located somewhere in France. The memorandum states, “these seven male nurses have the same training and hold the same State Diplomas yet they are classed as orderlies and paid about one half the salary of a female nurse.” The reply, from a colonel in the Medical Corps, “these men are ineligible for appointments as nurses. Under the present law the Nurse Corps is for women only, the opening sentence being “The Nurse Corps, (female) shall consist of ……”.” Hence, the journey of the male nurse to achieve equal stature within the Army Nurse Corps would be one fraught with obstacles.
With the inception of the Men Nurses’ Section of the American Nurses Association in 1940, the efforts to introduce male nurses into the military escalated. From January 1939 until December 1940, male nurses’ organizations throughout the country inundated government officials with letters. These letters raised the question as to the status of male nurses who desired to serve their country. For those men trained as nurses, no opportunities existed within the military. The review of the correspondence between various male nurses and the Medical Administrative Corps, the Army Nurse Corps Superintendent, Congressmen and the Surgeon General offers great insight into the enmity that existed between these parties.
An excerpt from a letter dated 13 June 1940, written by a male nurse and addressed to Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States, provides an insight to the situation that existed. The nurse writes, “It is at a time like this that we feel something should be done about the status of the registered men nurses in the Army and Navy Medical Services. We have tried for years to obtain the same relative rating for men nurses as is given to women nurses. We cannot understand why there should be such discrimination between the two groups. Men nurses receive the same training as the women; are accepted for membership in all the national nursing organizations and are eligible for registration in every State of the Union. Yet, in spite of equal training, we are not accepted for peace time or war service.”
The Assistant Surgeon General wrote the reply to this particular letter. He states, “The Surgeon General has made a sincere effort to provide positions in the military service for male nurses who have received satisfactory training and also to provide for them a suitable career. You may not be aware of the fact but a Technical Sergeant, which is the second highest-ranking noncommissioned officer grade, is a position in the Army that has dignity and importance. There is no possibility of the War Department considering relative rank of commissioned officers for male nurses.” He concludes that if male nurses desire to serve their country they will find the grade provided suitable and adequate. It was apparent that the nation’s leaders, facing the Second World War, had little latitude for the male nurse. During WWII, male nurses served within the military but only in a restricted nature and not within the Army Nurse Corps.
For several years following the end of World War II, the battering between the Army Nurse Corps, government officials and male nurses persisted. At the onset of the Korean War, the corps remained an all female organization. Yet, the inquiries from the civilian nursing profession, particularly male nurses, provided the leadership of this nation and the military medical organization little respite as those medical service professionals continued the pursuit for acceptance into the ANC. A slow crumbling of the wall that prevented the commissioning of male nurses into the Army Nurse Corps is seen in 1949. Correspondence began to have echoes of possibilities for the establishment of male nurses within the military. On March 29, 1949, a conference was held in the Surgeon General’s Office that was attended by representatives of the Army, Navy and Air Force. It was agreed that the present Surgeon Generals’ of the Armed Forces would recognize that the utilization of qualified and eligible graduate male nurses in the National Military Establishment was possible. However, no provision of law existed which authorized the commissioning of the male members of the nursing profession as such in the Armed Forces.
On the 10th of August 1949, Mrs. Frances P. Bolton introduced legislature H.R. 9398 to provide for the appointment of male citizens as nurses in the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Rapidly, a change in the character and nature of correspondence between significant actors of this period can be discerned. Congressmen are rethinking previous stances, military officials are adapting personnel policies, and prominent ANC officers are writing of the probable admission of male nurses into the Corps. Questions surfaced regarding admission of married men into the Nurse Corps, housing of men, the ability of men to accept direction from female superiors, the response of soldiers to male nurses and just exactly how the male nurse would be utilized. Discussions were in progress, statutes were being written, and nevertheless, it would take another six years to realize the actual commissioning of the ANC’s first male officer.
From August 1949 until 1955, government, military and civilian parties debated the commissioning of male nurses. During this time, bills were routinely introduced to Congress. Data supporting the need for an expanded manpower pool was submitted to the appropriations committee and to the armed services for expansion of the Army Nurse Corps through the use of the male nurse. After several series of legislature, on August 9th, 1955, President Eisenhower signed the Bolton Act, which provided commissions for qualified male nurses in the reserve corps of the armed forces services. Legislation to support this had been before Congress for many years. This legislation came as an indisputable achievement for male nurses and for the American Nurses Association who vigorously supported them.
After fifty-four years of tradition, the Army Nurse Corps commissioned its first male officer on October 6th, 1955. Lieutenant Edward T. Lyon became the Army Nurse Corps’ first male nurse. The ceiling had been broken. Male nurses quickly proved their worth by serving in airborne units, hospitals, resuscitation teams, and field units throughout the world. Male nurses of yesterday capitalized on the opportunities that the diversity of military service offers. Today, male nurses represent over 35% of the Army Nurse Corps. They serve parallel to their female counterparts, exhibiting immense skill, compassion and professionalism; continually upholding the core values of the Army. Army Nurses: Ready, Caring and Proud!
Historical Data located at the Army Nurse Corps Collection, United States Army, Office of Medical History, Office of the Surgeon General, Falls Church, VA
Original post from http://history.amedd.army.mil/ANCWebsite/articles/malenurses.htm
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