The Sisyphean Task of Nursing: Muscular Roles and Masculine Responsibilities of Malayalee Male Nurses

Abstract

Hospitals all around the world are failing to keep up with demand due to an aging staff and a rising population. India has a severe shortage of nurses and the number of males entering the nursing profession has increased significantly over the last two decades, which shows that Indian men are eager to seek careers in nursing. Their experiences in the profession, however, has not received significant attention. This chapter aims at exploring the work experiences of male nurses in a profession in which workforce is predominantly female. A total of 45 participants from three major cities in Kerala were recruited for the study using a qualitative phenomenological approach. Semistructured face-to-face interviews were used to collect the data and thematic analysis were used. Four key themes were found. Male nurses had individual motivation to choose the profession, but over time, they have become discouraged and disillusioned with it. Male nurses were reticent to advocate nursing to other males because they saw no future in the profession. The study highlights the difficulties that male nurses encounter, and if these difficulties are not addressed, there may be a significant decline in the number of males choosing to pursue careers in nursing.