Hemera | Thinkstock + Scrubs
Uniform? Check. No jewelry? Check. Nurse’s cap? Check! Nurse Leona Campbell of Scranton, Pa., still wears the traditional nursing uniform—the same one in use when she entered the profession more than four decades ago!
For Campbell, the cap is a point of pride; she says patients respect her decision and it helps her “do [her] job better.”
Would you like to return to the days of nursing caps and all-white uniforms? Or are you glad to don your colorful scrubs and keep your head bare?
RN
Registered Nurse
No way! Impractical white and caps are not needed anymore.
There is a reason nurses don’t wear caps anymore, caps were cultured and it was found that there was alot of bacteria growing on them. I think having a cap for graduation is nice but nurses should not wear them due to infection control reasons.
Scrubs Blogger
Scrubs Blogger
Fan
Because nurses deserve their own fan base
Good point!
RN
Registered Nurse
I respect her decision to keep on wearing white and her cap. I personally wouldn’t mind wearing white, but i do thinks its impracticle and by the end of the day i would look unprofessional because i would be a mess! To each her own i guess!
Scrubs Blogger
Scrubs Blogger
Fan
Because nurses deserve their own fan base
Well said, Catherine!
Nursing caps–NO. They get in the way and have pulled more of my short hair out already. Whites?? Maybe. We have gotten sloppy and almost rude w/ our colored uniforms. We can still wear cute stuff for kids and colorful stuff for adults, but too many times I see way to “cutsie” stuff on adults and it looks inappropriate for the nurse and for the clients she is caring for. Personally, I wear either white or black bottoms and a conservative, but colorful top that matches.
RN
Registered Nurse
I completely respect and understand this nurse’s desire to wear ‘vintage’. Those of us who had to EARN the right to wear our schools’ cap know what that means. It is also true that patients StILL identify the white uniform and traditional cap with Real Nurses. The scrubs, as one respondent noted, have become embarrassing when people wear worn-out, too tight, mismatched, etc.
Infection control? The CDC also cultured nurses’ nails and found that all kinds of nasty things live under anything which has chipped polish or is artificial. Also rings including the plain wedding band cultured out nasties. How many nurses do you see wearing a ring on every finger AND artificial nails to go with them?
The CDC also studied physicians’ NECKTIES and recommended that they not be worn in patient areas because they also carry Germs. How many hospitals can you count which have ‘outlawed’ the wearing of neckties by MDs and medical students? None that I have seen because doctors do not ‘cave in’ to such directives if they choose to keep doing what they have always done. And, as most are ‘Contractors’ and not hospital employees, they can decide to take their business and patients elsewhere, and no hospital is going to ‘push the issue’ with them when $$ are at stake!
RN
Registered Nurse
I have very STRONG feelings regarding uniforms and badges. First of all, I feel that in every institution nurses need to be recognized….not blended with the rest of the staff. I have run into MANY cna’s that lead pt’s to believe that they are nurses. I feel that, nurses should have the right to where what they want…they earned it. The rest should be color coordinated!! My second pet peeve is badges. While mine states that I am an RN, it is written so small that I can barely read it. I consider my badge my “office wall” and want recognition for my BSN, and the certifications that I have earned …. I will step off my soap box now!
Student
Nursing Student (you can change this when you graduate!)
I have a hard enough time keeping my hair looking decent, a cap would just fall off. How did they stay on with a nurse running to codes, bending…
RN
Registered Nurse
The nursing hats were eliminated because of aseptic purposes. If they were disposable it would be ok.
RN
Registered Nurse
Your cap is your “Dignity”! You are known on sight who you are. No questions here. Like someone else said jewelry, long nails, and chipped polish are notorioys bacteria carriers. Also “whites” are a symbol of nurses. No question here you are. You can use bleach, peroxide=, etc. here to keep them clean unlike colored scrubs. Here also you don’t have to learn each facilitys color code to learn who is coming into your room. That comes from being on the wrong side of the siderail!