Do You Look Like A Nurse?

[showbizrn]

Periodically during my 20-plus years in nursing, when I use a credit card that identifies me as a nurse, I have been told, "Oh, you're a nurse? You LOOK like a nurse."

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

DO YOU LOOK LIKE A NURSE?

(Sorry, folks. I KNOW I should've asked the question to all those involved what they meant by "You look like a nurse" but I was always too chicken) :trout:

Yet the question remains...

SHOWBIZRN

[Multicollinearity, BSN, RN]

I've been told this several times now, by different people. When people ask me what I do, I say I'm a pre-nursing student. They often beam at me and smile and say something like "You look like a nurse."

Funny since I'm a pre-nursing student. HA! Since more than one person has said this to me, I take it that I look kind, compassionate, moral, etc.

[gt4everpn, BSN, RN]

i definetly dont look like a nurse, i look like i'm 19! oh yeah my real age anyway i might look like a nurse! people have told me i look as old as 25 so hey, you never know!!

[Trophywife81]

When I was trying to decide whether or not to go to nursing school, I mentioned it to an acquaintance who said, "I can totally see you as a nurse; you look like a nurse." Still don't know what it means to look like a nurse, but I took it as a good omen and enrolled in NS :)

[CaLLaCoDe, BSN, RN]

Our hospital built a new tower, yipee! A cleaner, quieter, not necessarily safer (built way too fast and suffers code violations) building.

What gets me is on the web there is this picture of young nurses or people that "look like nurses" promoting our hospital in front of the ambulance bay with the hospital's name on the building on a crisp blue day. You get the idea from this as an employee that the establishment is embarrassed by how our staff looks. So they have to lie and put phony nurses working at our hospital as a promotional statement, get real!??? Not all our nurses are young not all our nurses are good looking but most can help you get well right quick and in good humor.

And by the way, no I don't look anything like a nurse. No one has come up to me after I've worked a 12 noc shift and resembling a living dead person on my day off jacked up on coffee and stated,"Hey you look like a nurse!!" Maybe it's the stubble. I just don't know....;p)

[hoppermom3]

I was on vacation in Texas last year and met an older lady. She asked me what I did for a living and when I replied "I'm a nurse," she nodded and said "I thought so." I asked her how she guessed (definitely no scrubs, stethescope, or other clues in sight!) and she said "You just look like a nurse. I have a daughter who is a nurse and she acts just like you." Since I hadn't been a nurse all that long at the time, I took it as a compliment.

[Tangerine Lipgloss]

I went to a psychic once with a few friends. I walked in and sat down and the psychic said "You're a nurse" I said "Yes" He told me that all nurses have a white light around them. Then he said "Kids kids kids I have kids bouncing all around you" I said "I'm a Peds nurse"

He did not know me. I was wearing regular clothes/jewelry.

Weird.

[Jo Dirt]

I went to a psychic once with a few friends. I walked in and sat down and the psychic said "You're a nurse" I said "Yes" He told me that all nurses have a white light around them. Then he said "Kids kids kids I have kids bouncing all around you" I said "I'm a Peds nurse"

He did not know me. I was wearing regular clothes/jewelry.

Weird.

That can seem like more than coincidence, but if you study cold reading it will not seem so amazing.

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

I think there is a certain aura that most nurses give off.....Its businesslike with compassion....

[NursingAgainstdaOdds]

I think it's possible many people mistake a certain demeanor with "looking like". Many nurses exhibit a demeanor which (IMO) exudes knowledge, confidence/assertiveness, has a certain "way" with people and communicates effectively with a variety of personalities. Not all nurses are the same, but the characteristics I described above are the ones that are dead give-aways when I am able to guess a patient or family member is a nurse.

[Dixielee, BSN, RN]

I will just add a few observations. I agree with the observations that nurses tend to be good or comfortable with people and new situations, but from a purely objective observation, most nurses I know, male and female are down to earth and practical. Women tend to have short hair, or relatively simple hairstyles ( who has time to fool with hair!), little or simple makeup and jewelry and very practical, comfortable shoes (love my crocs).

Men are a little tougher to "put a face on", but practicality seems to be overwhelmingly obvious in both sexes.

Nurses tend to move with a sense of purpose, not meandering around waiting for someone to tell us what to do. We know what needs to be done and go about it in the best way we can. ER nurses tend to move fast in everything they do, otherwise we get knocked down!

I have been told many times that I "looked like a nurse", and believe me, I gave up the cap and white hose years ago!

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

I was really grateful that I wasn't "capped".

[CaLLaCoDe, BSN, RN]

I was really grateful that I wasn't "capped".