Robert, this was a very interesting conversation and interview. Some of the points or questions could be subject to debate. I submit that there may be acceptance by default as the nursing shortage looms. Gender Identification in careers is an interesting social phenomenon. I think a comparable discussion would be about women’s role in an industry usually dominated by males and see what common ground they share. Necessity vs. desire is also another debate. I think the gender aspect is quite superficial. I experienced some speculative behavior in the early years of my career in nursing. I was never uncomfortable . Luckily I think refusal of my care giving only happened once or twice based on my gender. I never took offense to that as an issue.

As a Wound Care Specialist, I don’t really experience a lot of gender issues. I am sensitive to the needs of the patients and if its ever an issue, I make it a non-issue and make the patient feel comfortable by providing or asking for a female peer.

With regards to keeping awareness of gender dynamics in the workplace, I think its improving. Most facilities typically touch on it with orientation. It may be good to touch on the topic in discussion periodically to improve upon what the industry has achieved already. Forums such as this or a blog or user generated video are a great way to bring awareness. New Media and Web 2.0 can be a catalyst for such discussions. Great job for doing so Robert!

The gender split in the hospital which I work is a good question. I see more male nurses in the workplace but it still is dominated by females. I find it particularly interesting to see the split and ratio among the different units. OBGYN is always female. ER, ICU, Behavioral Health have more male nurses than the other units like Med-Surg, Telemetry etc. I wonder why?

As a Wound Care Specialist, I get the benefit of visiting all of the units and nursing homes. I have the opportunity to see things on a broad spectrum and have a “litmus test” taste of the mix.

Hi Jude,

Thanks so much for your comment, and I am painfully aware of the noise issues. Hopefully if you look at some of the newer versions you will see the sound and video quality improving. Looking back at some of the first episodes, which I filmed with my laptop, the sound is also an issue. You can actually hear the laptop fan. However, I have since invested into a better camera and microphone.

Glad you did get something out of the video despite the technical areas that could be greatly improved. Thanks for your patience, and I’ll do my best to make sure future episodes get better and better.

Thanks again,
Rob

Hey Dennis. So glad that you took time to post the comment. It is a pleasure to get the chance to interview the people I have. They are so incredible researchers and so passionate about their work, so it is fantastic to be able to share that with others. Despite seeing the numbers of visitors go up, hearing from real nurses and students that benefit make the effort worth it. So thanks again for taking the time to comment.