"Sometimes medical schools persuade boys to choose nursing in order to increase the employment rate, but the male students do not know the pressure until they eventually start in the job," said Yu. "The situation won't change unless people change their attitudes and nurses' pay is increased."

There are 1.74 million nurses in China, according to figures released by the Ministry of Health. Although there are no official statistics on how many are men, nursing association chief Ying estimated that they make up less than 1 percent. He said there is little hope of that number increasing rapidly over the next few years.

In March, Li won the 2010 Outstanding Nurse Award in Beijing. He was the man among 30 winners. "I don't know where my nursing work will take me," he said. "I'm just focusing on doing my job the best I can."