Lesbians’ and gay men’s narratives about attitudes in nursing

Abstract

Many nurses find it difficult to show compassion and sensitivity, and to give gay patients nursing of a quality equal to that given to heterosexual patients. The aim of the present study was to describe the experiences of gay patients and partners concerning attitudes in nursing. The method included qualitative semi-structured interviews with 17 women and 10 men, from different parts of Sweden. Nearly all informants described a sense of insecurity in ‘coming out’ to nursing staff. Most patients described being met by the nursing staff in a respectful manner, but sometimes they perceived a kind of distancing in the personnel’s behaviour. Informants related that nursing staff judged homosexuality as something abnormal. Informants thought that, as partners, they always felt like outsiders, but these were emotions they believed all relatives experienced irrespective of sexual orientation. However, some partners associated negative attitudes of nursing staff with homosexuality. The informants believed that the insecure feelings affected their ability to interact. The majority of informants stated that they found most of the nursing staff kind and caring, but that there were differences and that the goal should be – for all patients and relatives – equality in nursing care.