Sex and nursing

Sorry to disappoint, but when I said 'sex' I'm actually referring to gender, because I had a pretty unpleasant experience with some American nurses. I've worked in 4 countries as a nurse, and seen how uniquely similar we all are although the one place I haven't had the chance to work is American, the United States of America that is. Sadly, after my online experience with a major American nursing website, I'm not sure I want to go. All I did was start a topic, suggesting that gender does matter when doing certain procedures. In particular I suggested that it's easier, more practical and nicer for female patients, if a female nurse catheterizes them, instead of a male. As a result, I got told the following: I'm lazy I'm sexist I'm unprofessional I should not be a nurse I was stunned at the hardness of the comments, and while there comments towards me were harsh, I only hope they show kindness and compassion to their patients. Yet sometimes it's to imagine compassion from someone when you've seen their nasty side. But then, I think there's a hardness creeping into people in general, hidden in the guise of being 'professional' combined with the belief that 'I can do it all' - as if the ego is getting in the way of common sense. It's strange, but in NZ and the UK, catheterization was never a problem, and in fact most nurses and patients expected male - male, and female to female. And if a male was to catheterize a female, a female chaperone had to be in attendance anyway. What amazed me was that my American counterpart could not see this, and felt anything done another way, is simply not good enough. I'm daring to suggest that it is okay to put your gender first, because we all have our weaknesses and strengths, and it is okay to refuse to do something (although in an emergency, naturally we all do what we must) if you feel strongly against it. But what shocked me more was how many women said they'd be happy with a young male nurse doing such procedures on their 18yr old daughter, and they even said their daughter would not have a problem with it as well. If this is true, then this is a major cultural difference to the places I've worked. I've worked with teenagers for 10yrs now, and not one ever wanted to see a male gynaecologist and not one would ever let a male do such a procedure on them. Does this mean Americans are different? If the insults I received as a result of my view are any indication, then I have to wonder if Americans have lost their ability to be modest, if their nurses are too proud, and that the word 'professional' means that common sense no longer matters.

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