Florida Program Aims to Attract More Men to Nursing Profession

In an attempt to alleviate the nursing shortage in Florida, the Florida Nursing Students Association recently launched a campaign to attract more men to the nursing profession, the Associated Press reports. The association is working to change the gender stereotypes typically associated with nursing by “diversify[ing] the perception of nursing and the males in the field”; specifically, the group has revamped its literature and website to include more men and has developed educational programs that highlight men in “active nursing roles, such as critical care units.” One nurse notes that it is important to expose children to male nurses in elementary or middle school, “when early career decisions are made,” adding that high school counselors also should to “be reached because they don’t traditionally promote nursing to men.” The AP notes that 20% of Florida State University’s current nursing class is male, exceeding men’s representation in the nursing workforce for 2003 by 12.5% (Ford, AP/Miami Herald, 10/4).