Bling on the job?

[Haunted]

I have a stunning 2 carat princess cut engagement ring set in hand cut platinum. I wear it every day of my life, including "on the job". I wash my hands between patient contact and wear gloves and have never considered taking it off when I work. I have had lot's of comments on it from patients and co workers alike and most ask if I am concerned about damaging or losing it. I always say that it is safer on my finger than anywhere else I could keep it. I don't wear a necklace and keep my earrings to a minimum. My question, do you have anything special that you wear on the job and do you ever get any flack for it?

[Preemienurse23]

Even though you wash your hands, that ring still harbors lots of bugs that can be spread between pts, and at home. Plus there is the risk of damaging or losing it. You can accidentally scratch/cut pts with your ring also. have seen many nurses safety pin their rings to their scrubs. I'm also in the NICU and we don't wear rings, watches, or bracelets. I would look at your facilities policy about jewelry to make sure.

[suzanne4, RN]

And I have seen many stones lost from settings while the nurse was at work. Much better off to leave that at home, and just wear a band when working. You can also scratch a patient if a prong gets bent, and that happens as well. And size does not matter here, whether it is 0.25 carat or even 5 carats, it does not need to be worn at work. And prongs do puncture gloves, what if you got poop in it, or blood? Never say never, have seen everything happen thru the years.

And as the above poster mentioned, you are still harboring bacteria under the stone, I am sure that you do not take a brush to it each and every time that you wash your hands.

I would much prefer being safe than having a ring on my finger like that at work.

[naijanurse]

i agree with the other posters that wearing your ring on your finger during work is an infection control risk. if you are concerned about losing your ring, or want to have it with you at all times, you can always wear it as a pendant around your neck. that way it is still with you and you dont have to worry about misplacing it.

~shakira

[ladytraviler]

I wear two rings when i work. One is a plain hematite band and the othe is my mothers ring. I have the prongs checked regular like. I also have checked every facility policy as i work as a traveler. I would not dream of taking either one of them off. I use a scrub brush on my hands and make sure I scrub the rings as well. I have also had a lot of compliments on them. I would walk a contract before either ring comes off my hand. That is what they mean to me. Most facilities have rules about the jewelry you can wear. I check with my manager before i take a job. My mothers ring is insured against stone loss so I really do not worry about it. I have never scratched anyone with it either.

[fergus51]

I don't wear any rings or bracelets at work and don't like seeing it on other nurses. I'm a jewelry lover, but I think that it's icky in the hospital setting.

[Smackdown]

I have never worn my engagement or wedding rings to work because I think it is disgusting. I like to wear them at my home and going out places. I would feel as I was taking my jobs nasty bugs with me everywhere I went if I wore it at my job and then at home also. I love my rings but I would rather keep them clean and keep my patients safe than wear them to work.

[angelladyclaire]

If your hospital's policy allows rings, I say go for it if it works for you. Some may be uncomfortable wearing their own jewelry, and that's fine for them. I don't think a ring is any more of an infection control issue than using your steth on multiple pts as long as you wash your hands / clean your steth between. I can understand not wearing rings in nicu because, hello, those kiddos have super fragile skin. I wear my wedding set and a watch to work every day. I feel naked without them. Not once have I scratched a patient or torn my gloves that I know of. Yes, it could happen, but until my facility tells me otherwise, I will continue to wear my "bling." Use your own good judgment and do what fits your situation best.

[USAstudent]

I wear my wedding band and engagement ring (with smallish stone) to work everyday. I just don't feel right without them nor am I comfortable taking them off freqently. I've never had problems with torn gloves or scratching patient, although I'm sure it could happen. Also, I'm young and work in the emergency department (lots of people coming through) and it fends off many unwanted advances (from patients and med students/residents) :)

I get more comments about my ring from the guys..."so I see your married already" which I would much prefer to "want to go out sometime?"

As long as you're within the dress code, its just a matter of preference.

[joyflnoyz, LPN]

One thing I've done, and I've also seen other nurses do is to wear the rings on a chain around my neck while at work.

They don't get in the way, no chance of them scratching anyone and they are close to my heart :)

[allele, LPN]

I wear my engagement ring only, and I'll wear my band with it when I get married. I wash my hands between all patients too, taking off the ring to do so, clean it throughout the day and it gets a good cleaning daily at home, whether I worked or not. I keep my hair up and my nails short and wear clean scrubs everyday, I just don't think wearing one ring will ruin all that. I've never scratched a patient with it nor gotten it caught on anything, and I can't really see how it's more of an infection control issue than wearing a wedding band only....they can get bacteria caught underneath also and many of them these days also have diamonds set in. I say as long as your facility allows it and you're comfortable with it, then it's fine. I don't feel comfortable not wearing mine either! :)

P.S. Sounds like a GORGEOUS ring! Congrats!

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

this topic has been explored rather recently, but i'll add my two cents once again: i have no engagement ring, and my wedding ring has a fair-sized stone, set in. there are no prongs to catch on a patient's skin and no rough edges. my dh had it designed that way knowing i prefer not to take my rings off. there's never been any difficulty with gloves, and i clean my ring when i wash my hands. i take it off only rarely to get the setting checked by the jeweller or once when i had surgery.

my ring (as was my husband's) was blessed by our priest when we married. i don't take it off lightly. in addition to that aspect of it, i've a touch of arthritis and in the years since we've married, my knuckles have grown a bit larger. it's an all day struggle to get my ring off now!

as far as infection control, i do my best to keep my ring (and my hands) clean. but when i'm seeing my co-workers come to work wearing five or six rings each, bracelets halfway up the arm and long, dangling necklaces i think my one little ring is probably just a drop in the bucket of infection control issues. when those issues become a non-issue, i'll consider not wearing my ring to work, but i suspect that won't happen in my lifetime!