PHOENIX — In 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said men made up 13.3% of registered nurses, which was up 8% from 2008.
"Nursing is all about service. It is all about care,” says Dr. Maria Dezenberg, the Executive Director of Academic Operations at the Arizona College of Nursing.
And, for so long, Dr. Dezenberg says society has seen men in a certain category of occupation.
Nursing, she says, wasn't always one of them.
"It's a much easier playing field for men to get involved in and to really make a difference, said student Trent Morris.
"More men should be encouraged to be more caring, more giving, and more loving. I think the nursing environment encourages that a lot,” added Morris.
Fifth-semester student Jonathan Tessitore has picked up on something during clinicals.
"You see these nurses having 22 patients they have to constantly take care of, so they are always constantly on the go throughout their entire shift," added Tessitore.
Out of the Tempe school's 1,000 students, Tessitore is one of 130 who are men.
Watching his mother work with his grandfather, during Tessitore's high school years, made him want to help others.
"He had a lot of medical complications. My mother was constantly helping him. She is not even a nurse or in the medical field,” added Tessitore.
From time to time, Tessitore would help his grandpa until his death in 2016.
"It kind of just slowly nurtured my way to just becoming a nurse and having more interest in that,” added Tessitore.
Tessitore likes his school which he says is more accelerated than others in the Valley.
Dr. Dezenberg points to the way students are taught.
One of the best yet most important things at school, she says, is the control module. The computer is packed with different scenarios to make the artificial intelligent patients more like typical patients to help create real-life experiences for students.
"It matters because it helps our students to practice everything they are learning and put it into a real scenario,” added Dr. Dezenberg.
