Going Back To Wearing Whites and The Cap!

[live4today]

Yeppers......strongly thinking about it!

There's a nurse on my unit who wears her starched white nursing dress, white stockings, white shoes, and her nursing cap every tiime she works.

Everytime I see her, something in me gets "quickened"...so to speak. I start reflecting back to when I first donned my nursing attire as a nursing student all excited about my first day of clinicals. I never tired of dressing for my clinicals throughout college.

Once I graduated and landed my first job, I got to experience that thrill all over again but of course at that time the only ones NOT in whites worked in ER, L&D, and the various ICUs of the hospitals I worked in.

Then, I started seeing less and less white uniforms and nursing caps over time to the point I hardly see any anymore.......until I saw the nurse where I work. I'm impressed by the way she dresses, the way she carries herself, her assertive manner, her take no crap style, and her dedication to all she went to school for and her pride in earning her cap and uniform to this day long after finishing school. I don't know how old she is, but if I were to guess, I'd say she was mid-thirties or 40 maybe. Hope I'm not wrong......she's a great person. Maybe I'll ask her how old she is, and tell her how much I admire her "style" as a nurse.

I have loooooonnnnggggg lost my nursing cap. I cannot remember what I did with it. Probably got lost in all the moves I have made over the years. Now, I want to return to my Alma Mater's bookstore and buy me a nursing cap with full stripe and wear it again. I don't even own a white uniform anymore. Alllllllll scrubs of various colors and prints.

I'm just wondering how many nurses posting have felt the need or desire to don that cap and uniform again....if only just for a shift or two........ya know....like "dressup Friday"?????

I already can hear the millions of voices saying already "NOOOOOOOOOO WAY........those days are history"........so I respect your point of view on that, too. But, how many of you even think about wearing your cap and uniform on occasion?

Thanks for ALL replies!

[mobileLPN]

As a guy who has always been a fan of whites I have a few observations to make. When I wear hospital issue green scrubs or my own teal (left over from LPN school) or blue scrubs at work, I am often mistaken for the doctor, the lab or x-ray tech, or even housekeeping. This is despite the fact that my name badge has LPN in big lettters and I introduce myself as a nurse to every patient I take care of. When I wear my whites, everybody knows I'm a nurse. I always hear that whites are soiled too easily. That's the point! I'd hope that whatever color you wear, if you get blood or other fluids on you, you would change. Whites make it very clear what you've been dealing with.

Being male, I have no personal experience with caps. I have worked with a few nurses and nursing students over the years who wore caps and must say that none looked anything but professional. Some people think the are meant to indicate subservience. I don't buy that for an instant. Airline pilots and Military officers wear caps, do we consider them subservient? No, we consider their uniforms a sign of their authority.

One last observation.....

Imagine you walk into your lawyers office, perhaps your incorporating a new business, or just need some contract advice.

You look up from your paperwork and see your lawyer, the licensed professional that he or she is, wearing their pajamas.

Think about it.

-Aaron

"He who trades liberty for safety deserves neither"

-Benjamin Franklin

[justjenn]

If I am lucky enough to graduate school next year, I WILL be wearing white's, cap & yes, even cape. It was a dear friend of my Nana's. I have always been different & walk to my own beat, so it would not bother me.

PLUS, I have talked to a few women who share the same views as me. Although they wouldn't wear the uniform if they were the only ones, if I did, they would too. I plan to form a club "NCS" Nurse's Cap Socitey.

justjenn

[Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN]

Originally posted by justjenn

If I am lucky enough to graduate school next year, I WILL be wearing white's, cap & yes, even cape. It was a dear friend of my Nana's. I have always been different & walk to my own beat, so it would not bother me.

PLUS, I have talked to a few women who share the same views as me. Although they wouldn't wear the uniform if they were the only ones, if I did, they would too. I plan to form a club "NCS" Nurse's Cap Socitey.

justjenn

Just watch that cape so that you don't accidently get it caught on something. :)

[justjenn]

MishlB

I work in a very -layed-back law office where I don't often work w/ the public. I am a behind-the-scenes person. My dress atire is normally blue jeans, or these pants that hang a smidge down from your waist. All my clothes are pretty much my boss' 14 yr. old daughters - hand-me-downs.

When I am on the phone, I get treated with respect. When people come to our office & see me in person - they all think I am a kid and treat me different. It's like they don't think I am capable of doing the things that I was doing.

Now, in the other law firm I worked for, I had to dress the "paralegal part." I didn't get respect from the attorneys, but did from the clients.

It doesn't matter what you wear - doctors/lawyers will all treat you bad or underneath them regardless. I just live w/ it.

Wish things were different.

justjenn

[Ariko]

Originally posted by cheerfuldoer

Ummmmmmm...ARIKO????????.....JNETTE......NOT me said that men wearing white looked like cooks. Just getting the usernames right for ya!

A thousand pardons. Not my first charting error this week. (or is it weak?)

[Noney]

Cheerfuldoer

I worked for 6 years in a facillity that required nurses to wear all whait and caps. The patients (geriatrics) could tell who was their nurse. Funny thing is when I quit there and went to another facility I would catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and think "Oh no I forgot my cap" I also used to wear a white dress uniform occasionally. Too big for that now!

You can was you cap with dishwashing liquid and a soft brush.

I know a few nurses that threw their cap in the washer (by itself) then let it hang dry.

[SteelTownRN]

There really are two sides to the whites vs scrubs debate. On one hand, white is a color that is recognized by the public as being worn by nurses, and gives us instant recognizability. (How many non-nursing staf have been mistakenly identified as a nurse by patients and families?)

The other side is that whites are a reflection of a time where nurses were subservient and little handmaidens, not the progressive professionals that we have evolved into over time. Whites seem almost impractical. Furthermore, as men increase in number in the profession, it is purely sexist to portray nurses in dresses and white caps, something not worn by men. Scrubs have become a necessity in many areas of the hospital, as infection control measures are implemented. I personally feel that ancillary staff (housekeeping, maintenance, dietary) have no business wearing scrubs, and only serve to confuse patients and families by wearing them. How many people wear nametags where the name AND service department are clearly visible? And, how many patients have the eyesight to even read them anyway? Just my two cents...

[jnette, ASN, EMT-I]

Originally posted by Ariko

Uniforms are one of my favorite subjects.

Now comes the more interesting question of what would the male nurses wear. Cheerfuldoer s comment that men wearing white look like cooks, just mean that she has had narrow exposure. See any Navy men in dress whites, and Navy women too for that matter, and it will change your views. Actually that is a good point. The Navy women I have seen dressed in white, with a white SKIRT AND CAP look fabulous. >>Sigh

Cheers.

Yes, Ariko, it was ME, not Cheerfuldoer's remark above. :)

And no, I've not had narrow exposure, but quite the contrary. I've been around plenty of Navy Whites both male and female, believe me, and I agree that their uniforms look SHARP !

Perhaps I'm being misunderstood here, when I say our guys looked like "cooks".

It's not the COLOR, the "whites" itself I'm referring to as much as the "look" of the uniform or perhaps the material it was made of. I think that's more what I mean. I'm a big fan of white.. always have been. But the male medic uniform was made of.. cotton, perhaps?.. kind of a thin cotton, or whatever it was, it wasn't anywhere near the sharp, well made, well tailored uniforms of Navy Dress. The material just wasn't the same. And unless you had all kinds of insignia on it which comes with higher rank, the poor little Joe with just one stripe and a nametag working his butt off and getting his white "cottons" all wrinkly and dirty, just lent to the impression that he was pulling KP... I'm not cutting them down at ALL... just always tickled me. Now for the instructor, or the guys working in the clinics, radiology, immunizations, etc. who could keep their uniforms looking sharp through the day it was fine. Just wanted to clarify what I meant by all that. :)

[jschut, BSN, RN]

Renee~

I know I'm WAY outnumbered here.....

I'd love to see the caps and all white again! Looks professional and earns respect, in my book.

But also~ clean, pressed uniforms (no matter the color) and neatly done hair also shows professionalism and pride in your chosen profession.

Too many times have I seen nurses where I work come in looking like they've slept in their uniforms and/or not even matching at all! Hair a mess, and looking totally disheveled.

That's sad, in my book.....

If you wanna wear your cap....GO FOR IT!!!!

[Teshiee]

Never never in my life will I wear white. It is too much trouble to keep white. It just signifies uptightness to me. I am a dedicated nurse and I don't need a rigid uniform to validate my nursing!!!!! I swear if it ever came a day I would leave the profession!!!! That doesn't represent me at all.

[opalmRN]

But, how many of you even think about wearing your cap and uniform on occasion?

And just think of the reaction of many of the patients! Many already are uncomfortable because they have ask someone in housekeeping to perform a nursing function. This was the case when my father was in the hospital a few years back and he was so confused as he thought only the "nurses" wore scrubs.

I say when I get a hat, I just might be inclined to wear it. Say maybe start a national white uniform day just for the heck of it!

C

[justjenn]

opalm

What a marve idea.

Justjenn