British South Asian male nurses' views on the barriers and enablers to entering and progressing in nursing careers

Abstract

Aim:To ascertain British South Asian male nurses' views on the barriers and enablers to entering and progressing in nursing education and careers.Background: There is a shortage of men from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic groups in the National Health Service nursing workforce. There is a dearth of evidence on the views of British south Asian men on this subject. Methods:A qualitative interpretative intersectional approach was used to carry out one-to-one interviews (n = 5) with British South Asian male nurses using a semistructured topic guide. Interviews took place between July 2018 and February 2019, across England. A framework analysis approach was used to analyse the interview transcripts. Results:The main themes emerging as barriers were as follows: poor pay and conditions; negative immediate, extended family, community views; and a lack of knowledge and awareness of the nursing profession. The main themes emerging as enablers were as follows: personal circumstances (including role models) and ethnicity (including the role of religion and masculinity). Conclusion:Findings suggest that the intersection between ethnicity and gender presents as an important enabler, as well as inhibitor, for British South Asian men.Nursing careers and salient barriers exist at a systemic level and include institutional racism. Implications for Nursing Management:• Managers review policies and practice on unconscious bias and institutional racism in the recruitment, retention and progression of British South Asian men.• Employers provide continuous professional development including mentoring support to help career progression for these men.• Human resources colleagues develop culturally specific interventions to reduce the stigma associated with the nursing profession in the British South Asian community.

Emotional Labour of ‘Angels’: The Performances and Experiences of Male and Female Nurses in Sri Lanka

“…Sri Lanka's nurses perceived nursing as women's work and a stereotypically 'feminine' profession as found in most other contexts (Cottingham, 2015;Gray, 2010;Qureshi et al, 2020). Confirming prior research (Cottingham, 2015;Simpson, 2004Simpson, , 2007, this study revealed that allocation of job roles and clinical areas were gendered where female nurses handled stereotypically 'feminine' maternity or paediatric wards while male nurses handled stereotypically 'masculine' psychiatric or medical wards.…”

Employment Inequalities Among British Minority Ethnic Workers in Health and Social Care at the Time of Covid-19: A Rapid Review of the Literature

“…One of the main explanatory factors of these observed deferential are linked by several authors to 'white hierarchy' and the 'ruling relations' between senior teams and other workers as well as institutional and structural racism where unspoken rules favour white and male professional staff for better jobs (Howells et al, 2018;;Sahraoui, 2019;Milner et al, 2020;Qureshi et al, 2020). Furthermore, several authors argued that ME workers internalise such structures within this construct, not seeing themselves 'fitting in' among the 'white crowed' senior colleagues and lack a role model in senior positions (Qureshi et al 2020).…”

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