Men Welcome in Nursing

I found the article on men in nursing (February 2008) very interesting on the whole. I have often felt that men can be very compassionate and understanding; because male patients sometimes like to "push" female nurses around, having a male nurse would've been wonderful in many situations. My only real complaint about the article was that it seems petty for men to be "put off" by seeing "standards of practice and code of ethics" written with the word "she" in them. How many thousands of years have women had to read instruction books and articles directed at the males of the world?

Judy Stanforth RN
sent via email

Inform Parents of Teen's STI?

I was very concerned by the opinion expressed in the March 2008 "Ethics in Action" column, regarding what to do when a 15-year-old is being treated for a sexually transmitted infection (STI) and requests that her parents not be informed. Amy Haddad advised that the proper action is to treat the patient without informing their parents. Her reasoning was that the greater good was to treat the patient, thus preventing more serious health problems and the spread of an STI.

The advice may be factually correct, but I believe it contains several flawed assumptions. First, it assumes that the STD is treatable; many STIs are not. Second, it assumes that the patient is ultimately responsible for their health decisions. This is not the case for minors. If it were, then why do parents have to sign permission forms for their child's treatment? Third, it assumes that the patient will pursue a responsible course of action in the future (and not acquire more serious STIs). If a minor is having unprotected sex at an early age, this seems unlikely at best.

An STI in a minor is undoubtedly a signal of risky behavior, which is likely to continue without help from people who can modify the patient's behavior: parents or relatives. The patient and/or health provider may be forced to break much worse news to the parents someday, which earlier disclosure and intervention can prevent.

Michael Stewart
Ithaca, NY

Reserve the "Nurse" Title for Nurses Only?

I have been a nurse since 1984—first an LPN, then an RN, and now an RN-BSN. Does it bother any other nurses when non-nursing personnel refer to themselves as "nurses"? I have worked in two different offices where the doctor will tell a patient, "I'll have my nurse come in. ..." Well, they are talking about the medical assistant (MA). Where I currently work, the MA introduces herself as "one of the doctor's nurses." It upsets me because I have worked so hard to obtain the title of nurse, and I am very proud of it. It is demeaning to think that someone who choose to go to a non-nursing school can call themselves a nurse. Fortunately, our office requires the use of name badges, identifying our credentials. Many patients do not have any idea what "MA" stands for, however, and I feel this is misleading to the public. An MA is not always licensed or certified, and is not required to obtain CEUs. Does anyone else feel this way? Is there anything that can be done?

L. Jones, RN, BSN
Tampa, FL

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