A Nurse CAN be both sexy & smart

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I am skipping a bunch of posts so I'm not sure if someone said this already: I think the biggest problem may be nurses' portrayal by the media. Nurses are portrayed as sex objects or as physicians' handmaidens on TV and movies and no one understands what we actually do. People do not know that nurses are educated professionals, work independently from physicians, are both men AND women, and are not sex objects. Once people understand health care and what nurses do I think nurses will be treated better and respected more.

It does not have to be an either or situation.Dowdy does not always equate to smart.

A nurse can be both smart/educated professional and sexy as heck!:yeah:

Why does one taking care of oneself lead to the dumbo comment? You can't hide sex appeal.So yup,nurses can have it both ways.

Three cheers for sexy smart nurses:up:

Specializes in geriatric, ER.

my fiance calls it "geek chic"....

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Specializes in Trauma Surgery, Nursing Management.
my fiance calls it "geek chic"....

I love it!!!:yeah::yeah::yeah::yeah::yeah:

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Specializes in Operating Room Nursing.
No, sexy does not belong in the workplace, I agree Heidi.

Just the other day, I was scrubbed in and the circulating nurse (relatively new, had moved from place to place although she is not a travel nurse...she said that it was "just time to move on" when some of the staff asked why she moved around so much) was having trouble with the bovie pad sticking. We had already prepped and draped, and the bovie kept alarming. Finally the surgeon asked her to just replace the pad. She crawls up under the drapes and places a new pad on the patient. When she got up, she said breathlessly, "Dr. X, I know you just wanted to see me on my knees." Oh. Em. Gee. The surgeon was silent, and gave me this "What the heck?" look. I just shook my head, and the resident rolled his eyes.

I see this nurse constantly touching, flirting and acting "familiar" with attending surgeons and residents. I am embarrassed FOR her. I believe that this nurse is the epitome of Trashy Barbie, and I hope that she decides that it is "time to move on" shortly!

:)

I've seen very similar behaviour and it's kind of pathetic. Some nurses are soooo desperate to 'snag' a surgeon and seem to think their obvious and trashy behaviour will impress them or something.

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So you wrote it, knowing it was inflammatory and was just waiting for someone to be offended or spank you for being rude and/or insulting? LOL....

I definitely agree that some of those that think they're the "cat's meow" really get in the way of us gorgeous/sexy people! Did you see how hot I am? NOBODY has black and white spots like me.....

Just check out my pic!! oh and I'm smart, too....I can sit and quite literally lie down with the best of them! I also have this uncanny ability to know when people in the house are talking about leaving......

I'm surprised it took someone this long to respond to this. An honest response to a stupid played out topic.

I apologize for not including 'in my practice' in my statement. I wouldn't say anybody is fat/ugly on this board as I've never seen anybody. Furthermore , in all honesty I could really care less if a nurse is fat/ugly or smart/sexy. Some of my best workplace friends are 'fat and ugly' but wicked intelligent and we get along wonderfully since I don't categorize ppl I meet or inyeract with. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I know what category I fit in and proud of it but don't feel the need to flaunt it or let any of it ooze out at work since I'm professional.

Some of my single co-workers definitely think they're the cats meow in their tight scrubs and 2 lbs of makeup but really they're dumb as a box of rocks just trolling for a doctor. I know they *think* they're 'sexy' but all I see is trashy.

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I know what category I fit in and proud of it but don't feel the need to flaunt it or let any of it ooze out at work since I'm professional.

Some of my single co-workers definitely think they're the cats meow in their tight scrubs and 2 lbs of makeup but really they're dumb as a box of rocks just trolling for a doctor. I know they *think* they're 'sexy' but all I see is trashy.

Up2nogood RN, YOU can tell, can't you?:rolleyes:

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
There was a student in one of my classes who had the need to show her ta-ta's every day of class in those plunging necklines... I looked forward to clinicals to not have to see them (I'm a girl, I have my own to look at). But I swear, she searched high and low to find that one scrub top that could show what she had! I'm not sure where she got them but they certainly do exist!

I feared as much. :) Having witnessed the transformation of uniforms that fit pretty close to your shape to boxy jammie cut scrubs, I see the trend toward more stylish and flattering "scrubs" swinging back. . .but I'm old-fashioned about terminology and I'll be ****** if I'm going to call something with a plunging neckline a "scrub". Hrrrrrummmmph! The very idea!

I know exactly what you're saying, Karma! Now please for-the-love-of-god tell the guys who tuck in the top and roll up the sleeves like they're James Dean to cut that poser stuff o-u-t already?

And finally, since it's mother's day, I offer the (annoying) refrain started by me sainted Grandma passed on to my mom and suffered by yours truly -

"Pretty Is As Pretty Does" Love you Mom and Grandma!! :redpinkhe:redpinkhe:redpinkhe

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

Why do people see sexy and professional as mutually exclusive?

I love fashion and I consider my clothing and appearance as one venue to express myself. I have fun with it..I worked today and wore an argyle skirt with colored tights. (I work psych so I get to wear street clothes). I think I looked sexy and professional. My clothing is often fitted but I don't expose anything below my clavicle or above my knees. I usually wear my hair down and voluminized. I wear minimal makeup but accentuate my eyeleashes. When I worked med/surg, I wore scrubs seamed to the curves of a woman's body and cute, colorful sneakers.

As someone said, pretty is as pretty does. I wish women accepted each other more and the diverse ways we choose to present ourselves.

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Specializes in ICU, OR.

Hi, I am the person that the OP quoted. I wrote that in another thread about "what is the biggest roadblock of the nursing profession" or something like that. I said it was the portrayal of nurses in the media. Nurses are not sex objects. We are educated professionals. People don't take Nurses or anyone seriously if they think their job is a joke.

Hey, be sexy all you want outside of work. The fact that there is a Nurse out there that wants to be considered sexy on the job, there is something wrong there. And that was my point. Are engineers frequently called "sexy" at work? What about physicians? Mail carriers? Computer programmers? Chemists? Dietitians? Dentists? Veterinareans? Car salespeople? Marketing professionals? Janitors? Why is it that you are a Nurse and want to be considered sexy? Because the media has trained you to be? That is very sad. Maybe one day Nurses will be respected and the word "sex" will have absolutely no relation to our job title.

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Specializes in cardiology/oncology/MICU.

:DI am a male nurse. I see many of the women that seem to crave attention. They say things that are inappropriate. They talk about the things they do when they are not at work that I cannot imagine telling my coworkers. They do not care if I am present for these conversations. A few of them seem to ensure that their scrub pants are transparent and that they wear the brightest color of panties they own. And as stated befoer they flirt with every guy that comes onto the unit, especially the surgeons. Do they really think this is sexy? Do they not understand that their behavior is why guys treat them like trash? I never understood this, but as a man I find these women to be the biggest turnoff ever. A truly sexy woman is one that is happy with herself and confident. She does not "need" my approval to feel good about herself. Anyway that is a mans perspective on this most interesting topic

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Specializes in M/S, Travel Nursing, Pulmonary.

[sigh]

A thread about sex appeal vs. intellect gets so many responses its getting close to double digit pages long, yet threads about the details of nursing that affect pt. outcomes often get, eh.........3 or 4 responses.

Can you say "narcisistic"? I know the "sexy smart" nurses can.

Please, if you are in the habit of participating in discussions like this one, don't poste any thread complaining about nurses not being treated as professionals. Just click back on here and you'll have your answer.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.

I agree with Five and Two Will Do and to eric wellll . . I just wrote something really intellectual on another thread so my feelings aren't hurt. :p Your thread about ducks got quite a number of responses as I recall . . .

Anyway, after working at two teaching hospitals I've seen what Five is talking about, and I wish these girls knew how guys make fun of them behind their back, so I cringe, and then I actually feel sorry for them.

I'm not sure if your peers lose all respect for you that you can ever get it back entirely.

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Specializes in ICU, ER.
[sigh]

A thread about sex appeal vs. intellect gets so many responses its getting close to double digit pages long, yet threads about the details of nursing that affect pt. outcomes often get, eh.........3 or 4 responses.

Can you say "narcisistic"? I know the "sexy smart" nurses can.

Please, if you are in the habit of participating in discussions like this one, don't poste any thread complaining about nurses not being treated as professionals. Just click back on here and you'll have your answer.

[HUGE SIGH!!]

Eriksoln--- I personally talk about patient outcomes enough at work. I am willing to bet that the other nurses who participated in this thread also deal with patient outcomes at work ad nauseam. I come to AN to share moments of levity with fellow nurses, not to discuss "the details of nursing".

Just because the participants in this thread have chosen to chat about something frivolous, does not not negate their absolute right to illustrate the lack of professionalism with which we are treated.

If you feel the need to be "ALL NURSE-ALL THE TIME", I suggest you check out the chat rooms at http://www.nursingsociety.org, or a nursing specialty website like ena.org or aacn.org. I am sure that there are some riveting conversations about improving patient outcomes.

BTW, not only can I say "narcissistic", I can spell it.....

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