Being a man and becoming a nurse: Three men's stories

Abstract
The entry of men into nursing and their disproportionate dominance of the senior positions within the occupation raises some interesting questions about the influence of hegemonic patriarchal attitudes and orientations within this setting. Morgan (’Discovering Men, Routledge, London, 1992) explains that masculinity is not the possession or non‐possession of certain traits. It has to do with the maintenance of certain kinds of relationships between men and men, and women and men. Masculinities need to be understood as sets of attitudes which in varying degrees contribute to the maintenance and reproduction of patriarchal systems. Using this understanding of masculinity the paper examines how first year male nurses approach their entry into nursing. This examination demonstrates the process by which dominance by men is achieved and explains why women nurses need to be aware of the strategies used.

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