Recruitment barriers to men in nursing include a lack of male role models, poor understanding of the role among schoolboys and perceived gender stereotypes

Men are underrepresented across nursing, making up about 11% of the profession. But this proportion plummets even further when it comes to children’s nursing, with just 1,839 men on the register, a tiny 3% of the workforce, according to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). Why are so few men joining this 57,000-strong workforce – and are patients missing out as a result?