Male Nurses Are Updating The Face Of Health Care In L.A.
Now that a growing aggregate of medical procedures are being performed in outpatient care settings and physicians' offices, nearly 527,000 additional registered nurses (RNs) are projected to have already landed jobs by 2022. This indicates an anticipated 19 percent upsurge in the number of nursing professionals that were employed in 2012. In Los Angeles, RNs earn an average annual salary of nearly $66,000, higher than the national norm. It is a big-hearted vocation that is embracing a new face.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, of the 3.5 million RNs employed nationwide, only 330,000 are male. That is why strong-willed efforts are currently underway to place more compassionate men, like John Jimenez, in varied nursing positions.
"Male nurses are considered valuable assets to the health care industry because everyone is different," said Jimenez, a senior registered nurse at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center. "Male nurses use different strategies to manage patients, because we express our emotions differently. We rely less on physical touch and more on emphasizing knowledge and self-control."
How broad-minded have placement drives for male nurses been?
"Within the past three years, there has been a need in Los Angeles for diversity among nurses to reflect the patient population. Recruiting more men into nursing is also viewed as a way to address the increasing critical shortage of nurses."
How will a male nurse's role change by 2022?
"I would expect to see more male nurses taking the lead role in nursing, being able to delegate the workload of the department fairly, without diversity."
What must a male nurse do to secure a sound vocation?
"The best way for males to prepare for a sustainable career as RNs is to volunteer in different fields to learn the distinctive areas and see what best suits one. Also, go further in education, from an associate's degree to a master's degree."
What is your message to aspiring male nurses?
"My advice to males pursuing a career as an RN is to just do it. It's a great career. Nurses are always in demand, especially the males, because we are so few."
Sharon Raiford Bush is an award-winning journalist who covers topics of social interest in greater Los Angeles. Some news articles she has authored have been archived by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. Sharon also contributes to Examiner.com.
