Approaches of male nurses for degendering nursing and becoming visible: A metasynthesis

AbstractIntroductionPatient, nurse and public discrimination against male nurses is well‐documented. Male nurses encounter challenges in degendering nursing and becoming more visible nursing professionals. However, little is known about male nurses' decisions and strategies to address issues concerning gender‐based discrimination and professional visibility.AimsTo develop a comprehensive understanding of the approaches of male nurses to degender nursing and become more visible in the profession.MethodsA metasynthesis using the PRISMA guidelines. A comprehensive literature search was performed PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science and Scopus databases. The search terms included ‘lived experiences’, ‘male nurses’, ‘clinical practice’, ‘male educators’ and ‘male nurse managers’. In total, 16 qualitative studies published from January 2005 to November 2020 were critically appraised and synthesised. Two authors independently extracted data using summary tables. Data were synthesised using thematic synthesis which entails generation of codes and development of descriptive and analytical themes.ResultsMale nurses used intrapersonal, interpersonal and strategic adaptation to degender nursing and becoming visible as a nursing professional. These approaches entailed goal‐directed behaviours, relationship‐building strategies and positive and negative manipulation of resources.DiscussionThe approaches to degender nursing enabled men to prove their worth as competent nursing professionals, lessen the gendered stigmatisation and receive autonomy and respect.ConclusionsDegendering the gendered stigmatisation of nursing and becoming a visible nursing professional is essential for male nurses to promote diversity in the profession. Male nurses used both negative and positive approaches to gain recognition, respect and autonomy. They continued their struggles to promote the role of men as nurses.Relevance to Clinical PracticeNursing institutions and regulatory bodies could use the findings to develop conducive environments to degender nursing and increase male nurses' visibility. Future male nurses could use the identified positive approaches and tailor them to meet their needs to become more visible and competent nursing professionals.