NP with a beard?!?! - Page 2

I think beards are a non-issue as long as they're clean, but I'll bring up one consideration. Many deaf or hard-of-hearing people read lips, and a scraggly beard may hinder their ability to understand you. I work at a facility with a high number of patients who fit this profile, so it's been mentioned there. If the population you work with will include Deaf or HOH, you might consider keeping the beard/mustache trimmed - I think it's still fine to have one though.

One of the owners where I part time is an NP. With a beard. And shoulder-length hair. We all love him to death. No one's ever said boo about any of it.

logank brings up a valid issue with regard to lip reading. My husband occasionally has students who rely almost exclusively on being able to read their professor's lips in order to succeed at all in their studies. When he has such a student, he trims his moustache way down and has his beard professionally trimmed weekly instead of once or twice a month. His beard has a good bit of red in it and his beard is about half grey and the greys are kinky and flyaway. A good trim makes all the difference! I cut his hair and did most beard trims with a barber visit quarterly until he became this grey.

My cardiologist has a beard but I think it's because of a religion or something like that. Doesn't bother me cause I like men with facial hair.