“I prefer a male nurse to a female nurse”: patients’ preference for, and satisfaction with nursing care provided by male nurses at the Komfo Anokye teaching hospital

BACKGROUND: Although most male nurses join the profession for self-actualisation, the cultural and societal stereotyping of male nurses as “He-Man”, “gay” and “troublemakers”, and their marginalisation at the hospital during certain personal and intimate care procedures, tend to deepen the existing gender discrimination prevalent within the nursing profession. This study therefore assessed patients’ preference for, and satisfaction with nursing care provided by male nurses at the medical and surgical wards of Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital [KATH]. METHODS: An inferential cross-sectional study design, in which the prevalence of a condition among an identified population is determined, was used. Using convenience sampling, 150 respondents who meet certain practical criteria and are available and willing to participate were sampled. Data from a context-based research instrument on the opinion, preference and satisfaction of patients with male nursing were analysed using χ(2) test, Mann Whitney U test, ordinal logistic regression and logistic regression. RESULTS: The study indicates that more females than males had ever been attended to by a male nurse for the period considered by the study, and females described male nurses as polite and courteous and were comfortable with their treatment. Being single [OR = 0.111, 95% CI (0.013–0.928)] and professing Islamic faiths [OR = 36.533, 95% CI (2.116–630.597)] were functions of respondents’ preference for a male nurse. Significantly too, affiliating to a religious sect (OR = 2.347, 95% CI [0.076–1.630]) and being educated (OR = 1.387, 95% CI [0.040–0.615]), were associated with higher odds of falling in one of the higher categories of satisfaction with nursing care provided by male nurses as against the lower categories. CONCLUSION: Although marital status, religious affiliation and educational level were the significant predictors of patients’ preference for, and satisfaction with care provided by male nurses, the effect of the other variables should not be overlooked. The finding disproves assertions on the negative effect of religion on male nurses. It is recommended that public awareness be created on the role of male nurses in the healthcare delivery system to promote acceptance of gender diversity in the nursing profession.