Hair style

justme1972 · Jun 30, 2008

Mohawks are not professional unless you are an artist, give tatoos, or some other like-profession.

There is no such thing as a "small" mohawk...either you have an acceptable male haircut or you don't.

Hospitals are not the place for "self expression" and to me that ranks up there with tatoos and nutty piercings. There is a physician at the hospital where I am externing (that I am sure is very smart), but she has a nose ring and 6 piercings in one year...it makes you look at her instead of how smart she is, how she comes across, or how good of a physician she may be...b/c her appearance overshadows all of it.

Be recognized for your work and not be known as "that nurse with the mohawk."

The hospital is not the place for it.

glenmar3 · Jun 30, 2008

Hey all,
I'm trying to end the stereotype of people with mohawks are aholes.
Thanks.

Is your primary purpose in the ICU to end stereotypes or to care for critically ill patients? One would wonder I suppose how the stereotype came to be in the first place? I agree with Hopefull2009, it's unprofessional and inappropriate.

cota2k · Jun 30, 2008

can you compromise with a 'high and tite" cut? otherwise...yeah a mohawk will be stereotyped.

MassED, BSN, RN · Jun 30, 2008

Hey all,
During nursing school I had a small mohawk (roughly half an inch?) and the sides of my hair like a two. I hope the measurements make sense. Anyways, I shaved it awhile back due to the concern of scaring patients and or fellow coworkers. Lately, I have the urge to get it back and I don't like the look of the fohawk. I want to have my mohawk again. I will soon be working in the intensive care unit, and I'm wondering what my fellow nurses think of this? It would be a small mohawk. I'm trying to end the stereotype of people with mohawks are aholes.
Thanks.

that might be along the same lines as a nose ring in the workplace. Most don't allow the nose rings... I'd have to look at the policy where I work, but I know they're quite stringent on females with long hair or "uncontrolled" (which pretty much puts my hair right in the trouble zone, curly and long and always with the wild-look potential that is "frowned" upon). I think labeling a certain hairstyle as appropriate or not is completely ridiculous and bordering discriminatory (if you have weird hair like me), as one type of style could be offensive to a patient but be the trend of the moment. I hope the mohawk look (laid back, or sticking up?) will work for you at your place of employment.

MassED, BSN, RN · Jun 30, 2008

Mohawks are not professional unless you are an artist, give tatoos, or some other like-profession.
There is no such thing as a "small" mohawk...either you have an acceptable male haircut or you don't.
Hospitals are not the place for "self expression" and to me that ranks up there with tatoos and nutty piercings. There is a physician at the hospital where I am externing (that I am sure is very smart), but she has a nose ring and 6 piercings in one year...it makes you look at her instead of how smart she is, how she comes across, or how good of a physician she may be...b/c her appearance overshadows all of it.
Be recognized for your work and not be known as "that nurse with the mohawk."
The hospital is not the place for it.

that is quite judgmental. That is your opinion.

elkpark · Jun 30, 2008

IMHO, as long as a hairstyle falls within the guidelines of the facility's dress code and doesn't interfere with you doing your job, it's no one else's business. (If it's a violation of the employer's dress code, you've got a problem ... :))

Galaknore · Jul 1, 2008

Hopeful2009, I have no intention of spiking the mohawk. It would be very short and relatively close in length to the sides. I guess I misrepresented what I was getting at. I'm not necessarily trying to make a statement with my hair I just like the way it looks. I'm still going to consider doing it, and I will follow up on my companies policies regarding such a haircut. I figure as long as I am knowledgeable and sincere with patients (as I always am) even if I have a mohawk it won't matter. I am sure I will be stereotyped against, but I don't think that is any reason to not have it. As elke said, as long as I am doing my job correctly I don't think it matters.

thanks for the kind words Massed, and to all replies. :)

justme1972 · Jul 2, 2008

that is quite judgmental. That is your opinion.

It may be judgemental, but if you were to take a survey of who patients would want to work on them, lined them up, and they got to choose by appearance, I'm sorry, but the mohawk would lose every time, along with extensive tatoos and piercings.

I have no objection with people doing these things to their appearance, however, understand that the majority DOES NOT except these.

To be perfectly blunt, I feel that people who engage in WAY off the norm appearance want recognition without doing anything to actually EARN IT.

Anyone can alter their appearance to attract attention...that isn't very hard.

But what kind of message are you going to send?

Like it or hate it...that is how IT IS.

MassED, BSN, RN · Jul 2, 2008

It may be judgemental, but if you were to take a survey of who patients would want to work on them, lined them up, and they got to choose by appearance, I'm sorry, but the mohawk would lose every time, along with extensive tatoos and piercings.
I have no objection with people doing these things to their appearance, however, understand that the majority DOES NOT except these.
To be perfectly blunt, I feel that people who engage in WAY off the norm appearance want recognition without doing anything to actually EARN IT.
Anyone can alter their appearance to attract attention...that isn't very hard.
But what kind of message are you going to send?
Like it or hate it...that is how IT IS.

well, then, while you're at it, let's have the patients choose their nurse by attractiveness, which is just as applicable as having a patient choose their nurse by hairstyle or tattoos (or makeup, for that matter). Thank god we don't let patients choose their nurses, or many of them would be without a nurse caring for them.

So your "norm appearance" is what, might I ask? So for those nurses that wear their splashy prints (and there are numerous ones out there), they just want recognition.

Like it or hate it, that is how it is in your mind.

justme1972 · Jul 2, 2008

well, then, while you're at it, let's have the patients choose their nurse by attractiveness, which is just as applicable as having a patient choose their nurse by hairstyle or tattoos (or makeup, for that matter). Thank god we don't let patients choose their nurses, or many of them would be without a nurse caring for them.
So your "norm appearance" is what, might I ask? So for those nurses that wear their splashy prints (and there are numerous ones out there), they just want recognition.
Like it or hate it, that is how it is in your mind.

No, that is how it is in reality.

The "wild prints" issue...that is why some hospitals (and more every day) have went to dictating what color/style/etc that some healthcare professionals wear in the setting because there is always that handful that will wear scrubs until they fall apart, loud prints, or otherwise not care about how professional/unprofessional they look.

That is why most hospitals have a dress code for non-nursing staff, because you always have that handful of people that will wear items that belong in a night club rather than in a professional working environment.

That doesn't just go for nursing, that is anywhere you work and how people dress/appearance, if you read any human resources article is still listed as the #1 or #2 reason why people don't get called back for interviews, etc.

I have never in my life seen someone work in upper management who had "extreme" outward appearances or showed up to work every day looking like they just crawled out of bed....I'm sure a few people can cite isolated examples, but that is the minority, not the majority.

CNN Headline news, a few years ago, tried this "new" image of young, hip, they had newscasters on there that had pink extensions, more casual clothes instead of suits, more trendy hairstyles....they thought it would increase ratings by being not so "stuffy".

Their ratings plummeted.

Ever seen shots of large groups of physicians? Politicians? Very high-end sales people? You won't see any of the "funky stuff" going on there either, because they know it is detrimental to their profession.

Would you believe back in the "old days" of nursing school that they used to teach ETIQUETTE classes as part of your regular school?

This was to elevate the image of nursing, give it a polished, pristine appearance. When it used to be virtually 100% women, some of these women came from families where none of this was taught....they wanted to make sure you knew better.

I have posted this many times before, I have never in my life heard people bash the nursing profession in general or say anything negative about it....never. Individual nurses? Of course, but as a whole? Nothing but good things.

The only place where I consistently hear nurses bashing the profession is other nurses saying how disrespected the profession is on THIS message board....and the place that can change is starting with ourselves.

If you think the profession is disrespected, then your belief is your own reality, your own perception becomes how you live.

I am entering one of the most respected professions that this county has to offer and everything I do, every single day, is a step toward that goal.

silentRN · Jul 2, 2008

Ya, I tried growing out the hair to look more "professional" too. I'm just not comfortable with it growing longer so I just keep it clean cut with a 4 or 5 on top and a fade on the sides. I look like I'm in the military, but it's do able.

-David