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!

[WhiteCaps]

My understanding is the caps originated from the bonnets worn to keep the dust off their heads when cleaning walls & mopping floor. Midevil indeed!

Thanks Cheryl, glad you like it!

[meownsmile, BSN, RN]

I wore whites when our facility decide they wanted each floor/dept to wear a certain color. Didnt work when you floated, you stuck out like a sore thumb so i just stuck to whites. I never had problems with keeping them white, but we did have some that lived in the country and had high iron content in their water. So i can understand them not wanting to wear white.

They have since changed and let people wear whatever scrub colors/prints they want which works. The only problem i have heard since is that the patient complain they dont know who is a nurse and who is a tech/CNA. (sorry not my words but unfortunately some of the general public does make a distinction).

As far as caps, we used them in LPN school, but not in my RN program. I never really cared for them, got in the way, fell off and was just more to carry around. But we do still have some who wear their caps and i hear comments frequently from patients and visitors alike about how nice it is to see a nurse wearing her cap. I guess some see it as a badge of honor so to speak.

[caroladybelle, BSN, RN]

I wear alot of white as I am a traveler, and it is the easiest to fit with the unit that I am at, for any given time. I would not wear my cap as it wouldn't even stay in my hair when I was a student, no matter what the nuns did to get it to stay.

I own a couple of dresses, but it is harder to find nice ones these days.

I have never been mistaken for a student.

As I frequently work with the immunosuppressed, the white is easier to bleach.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Renee I respect the HECK our of your opinion and can see your point CLEARLY. HOWEVER, this will not fly in my line of work. In OB, we go from labor to csection sometimes in MINUTES so we have to be OR-ready at all times, including wearing hospital scrubs. White in OB would be disastrous in my opinion, anyhow. But I see your point regarding image and professionalism, yes I do!!!

[ST_NURSE_MLD]

Sorry, but I'm not a cap kinda gal....

[NurseJacqui]

Going back to the white starched dress and cap will only reinforce the old sterotype that nurses are hand-maidens to physicians and not much more. I wore a white cap all through nursing school and felt like a jackass. Plus, caps are simply not practical. When I was in school it was always getting knocked off my head.

[Sekar]

Personally, being male, I've never been into the hats. Although I did once wear a white baseball cap with "NURSE" on the front. I wore a white uniform in the Army when floor nursing. I hate them, wouldn't wear white now on a lost bet. White stikes a negative trigger in patients, especially kids. White gets dirty quickly and shows the dirt off like a neon sign. BUT, If it works for you, GREAT! Wear the hat if that trips your trigger.

Personally I prefer scrubs, with lots of pockets, and I have dozens of them in male type patterns (animals, outdoor prints, holiday scenes, etc...) in a variety of colors. I get lots of compliments on them from my patients, co-workers, and supervisors. I'm very lucky in that my wife is a gifted seamstress (and a hell of a Nurse) who makes my scrubs for me so I much greater variety than what is usually offered to males in our field. I never have a problem with folks confusing me with techs or CNAs, but then we wear tags with our title on them (state law). As long as the uniform is neat, clean, and not outlandish or offensive (I know, everyone's definition of outlandish/offensive is different) then they should be allowed to wear what they want. Monocolor scrubs, white uniforms, and similar ilk should not be required to identify us as nurses. If you like that sort of stuff, then wear it. If you prefer something different, that still fits within the rules of your facility then you should be allowed to wear that as well. It is your competence, confidence, and abilities that will let folks know you are a Nurse. The color and style of your uniform is relatively unimportant and truly just a matter of facility policy and personal taste.

[live4today, RN]

I can see rhyme and reason to all the comments posted. My own thoughts have vacillated (oooo...did I spell that BIG word right? :chuckle)...anyhooo...

I can really understand the rationale behind NOT wearing whites in OB, ICU, ER, OR, Cath Labs, Burn Units, any unit that cares for immunosupressed patients, psych, and pediatrics.

Telemetry, Med/Surg, Ortho, Neuro, and such....these are the areas I would consider the whites and cap again. I'm kind of excited about going to work next week with my whites and cap on just to see how everyone.....including my patients....will respond. I LOVE surprise! The essence of it all! Ahhhhhhhh

And...thanks for the KaysCaps link, P_RN! :)

[ptnurse]

Originally posted by ST_NURSE_MLD

Sorry, but I'm not a cap kinda gal....

Took the words right out of my mouth. Gives me a headache just thinking about trying to keep that thing on all day.

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

I like Sekar's idea . . . .a baseball cap with "Nurse" written on it.

I think you should do what makes you happy. If you feel a "quickening", then go for it.

I've said it before and I'm gonna say it again, Nursing is not a monolith. To each their own. No reason even to argue about it.

For some this feeling dates back to school when they did wear whites and caps. For some, like me, it means nothing because we didn't wear caps at all. Except at our pinning, one girl dressed in the traditional nursing garb and it was kinda neat to see the "history" of the nursing profession represented.

If you do decide to wear whites, post a photo. I'd love to see it.

steph

[nanasuzy]

I understand the clean white prof look but as a recent

grad who had to wear everything white, it's nice to have

some color now. I also found that white not only gets dirty

so easy but alot of the materials show everything underneath.

colored panties and panty lines definitely are not prof looking.

I quit wearing white anything when I had my kids (years ago)

and suffered thru nursing school trying to keep white white.

If I never wear white again it wouldn't bother me in the least.

[underj]

It has been along time since I have worn my cap. I agree that in some situations they were & are a nusiance and keeping them startched was a chore. Latily I have been replacing my coloured & printed uniforms with whites. The response from patients and other team members has been positive. Some of the other RNs I work with are now doing the same. I have had patient's stop talking to other health team members and direct thier conversation to me. When asked later why they didn't talk to the others their response "Why, you look like the Nurse". Guess our name tags aren't enough. Thanks for making me remember how hard I worked and how proud I was to recieve my cap and wear a white uniform. Yes, I agree a white uniform does give the impression (to most people) of a professional Nurse

"Simple pleasures bring great happiness." - Mary Helen Brindell