Celebrating Nurses: What Happened to the Cap?

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

Enjoy this Medcape Nurses 2013 Nurse Week Special

Celebrating Nurses: What Happened to the Cap?

Part 1: Dignity and Dedication The 'captivating' early history of the nurse's cap is illustrated in this slideshow which includes photos of Medscape readers proudly wearing their caps!

Part 2: Losing the Tradition Was it feminism and the equal rights amendment? Fear of fomites and hair loss? Or plain old practicality? Some were beginning to resent the cap.

Part 3: A Profession Moves On As the cap fell out of favor, a few stalwart nurses continued to wear it, and when that was no longer possible, to display it proudly for the next generation to see.

Articles:

The Dawn of the Cap Gone but not forgotten. Take a walk down memory lane with this photo-filled history of the nurse's cap.

The Demise of the Nurse's Cap This final chapter in the proud and respected history of the nurse's cap incorporates comments about caps from Medscape readers.

Kay's Caps still providing nurses caps to those interested.

Allnurses members are welcomed to post pictures of their caps in this thread.

[sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN]

well guess at 41yrs RN! I must be a fossil : I still wear mine when I work LTC and wear all white, the residents love it

[applewhitern, BSN, RN]

Wish I still had mine. I was so proud of my thick, black velvet RN stripe! With two little gold RN pins on each side. Back when I still wore it, nurses could smoke cigarettes in the break room, so mine ended up "yellow" from everyone else's smoke! I tossed it.

[DoGoodThenGo]

Don't know why everyone keeps talking about caps being out of fashion and what not, the things fly off eBay often going for good money. I mean they all can't be for Halloween or similar fancy dress. *LOL*

[sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN]

well some us collect vintage nursing caps, i have some going back to 1890s

[sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN]

kayscaps.com

[Hygiene Queen]

I think they're cool.

I do remember one particular nurse that looked stupid in hers.

She was shaped like a ball with an itty bitty head and wore a tiny little pointy cap.

She looked like one of those inflatable punching clowns that kids used to punch and blooooop it would rise back up again.

I. Did. Not. Like. Her.

One of my favorite nurses looked like she stepped out of a 1950's time-warp.

Perfectly set hair, red lipstick, sharp white uniforms and a cap.

Loved her.

Mine is in my curio cabinet and I was so happy I got to wear it on my graduation day... because that was my only chance

[amygarside]

as the world evolved, so as the way how nurses look.. caps will be in history

[subee, MSN, CRNA]

Couldn't keep them on with short hair. Nuns don't have to wear habits. Why should we have to wear caps?

[Isabel-ANP-BC]

I have mine from my ASN program. It's in a display box.

[P_RN, ADN, RN]

I blame it on the 70s. When I left Nursing school in '65,to get married, have 2 kids...Caps were IN. When I returned to University to finish school (1973) skirts were up to yonder, no slips heck no bra required. Only had to buy one wash and wear uniform, instead of the 6 starch and iron ones from before... and the director actually said... if you want a cap go to XXXX uniform shop and pick out one you like. No school cap, no ribbon, just pick. So I got a catalog from Kay's Caps and picked one I liked (more to choose from). I put it in a display case with my pin, my original license and the ticket for my family to see me graduate in a sea of black gowns and mortarboards. No white dress,no cap.

[kalevra, BSN, RN]

Well the first group of nurses in the "Profession" were prostitutes. Maybe we should also incorporate fishnet stockings as well. It seems more appropriate. lol

I want to implement the use of a tactical vest for male RNs. I think it looks much more professional and utilitarian.