Male nurses in Beijing
(CRIENGLISH)
Updated: 2005-09-01 09:12

Eleven male graduates from Capital Medical University in Beijing have begun working in the city's different hospitals as nurses, becoming the first batch of well-educated male nurses in Beijing.

The 11 graduates were the only male students out of 169 nursing majors in the university.

Experts say in the near future the number of male nurses will see an increase. At the moment, females still dominate the nursing profession, but male nurses can only be found in special places like mental hospitals.

But male nurses sometimes can do better than female counterparts, according to experts. It's easier for them to do long-time work, like standing over ten hours every day and constantly pressing patients' blood vessels to stop bleeding.

However, currently male nurses face great challenges. Their families aren't supportive as it's often seen as embarrassing for a male to do nursing in traditionally female field.

In the hospitals female patients often refuse them too. A recent survey conducted by a renowned website shows 70 percent of respondents won't take the male nurses.

Experts say it still takes time for the Chinese society to give male nurses greater understanding.

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