Men with dreadlocks

[Kuhl]

Im curious as too what you guys think about male nurses with dreadlocks......Do you think that i would get turned away from job offers? They are neat and well kept, not sloppy and can be pulled back behind my head if needed.

what do u think about them?

[C-DIFF PHIL RN]

it wouldnt matter to me, just as long as you can function...like i told our hospital "uniform snitcher" bean counter..the patient that you are putting a ng tube in dont give a crap how you look just as long as you can sink the tube correctly and quickly...but she just shows me a copy of the hospital uniform regs..and i get a call from my manager. hey you just cant beat the system.

[applern]

As long as they are neat and packed, thats okay. What mater is for you to be able to convince them that you are the right person for the job. I would say dress professional (I mean real nice).

[AZTECA]

I don't think it should matter...

However we all know it does. If that is who you are and you are unwilling to change who you are... Then fight the fight. I wear earings and plan to keep wearing them once I'm an RN.

p.

[gcupid]

Depends on what state you are in.....

Seriously, 1rst impressions are everything. An ex nursing student said that he really got the heat b/c he was a black man. In his words, "I'm that real black....See you..you light skinned."

I will tell you what I told him... People are going to judge you regardless....It's all about how you carry yourself which will determine how people treat you thereafter...

with that being said I do not have dreadlocks....I'm not intimidating & I present myself as very conservative.

I waited till after I was hired to make a statement....(You know how q1 whose black has to be a CNA or janitor. One of the white nurses automatically assumed a black nurse was a CNA.

So I faded RN in my head. Whenever I'd get asked the question RN or LPN? I'd just turn my head. But I balanced it out with some nerd glasses. LoL!

to answer your question..Just be yourself ..intelligent, respectful & a trendsetter...(its only apparent, when u make it apparent)

[Argo]

dang, where do some of you work? Im in Central TX and we treat all equally. I have tattoos, some of my staff RNs have tattos, some of my anesthesia techs have tattoos, and some of my scrub techs have tattos. Im not talking about tribal bands that are covered, Im talking about sleeves and neck tattoos..... I have black people, mexican/american people, pacific islanders and occasionally asian....... I mean really, who cares? I care that they come in and do their job and are not lazy, my only prejudice is against laziness........ Being in management I can honestly tell you I would not give a rats orifice if you had dread locks, you best come to work and do your job though..... When my hospitals pencil pushers come by and see my tats and dont say anything I told them from the start that they better not tell me anything about anyone elses tats either, I havent heard a word in 2 years.....

[gcupid]

dang, where do some of you work? Im in Central TX and we treat all equally. I have tattoos, some of my staff RNs have tattos, some of my anesthesia techs have tattoos, and some of my scrub techs have tattos. Im not talking about tribal bands that are covered, Im talking about sleeves and neck tattoos..... I have black people, mexican/american people, pacific islanders and occasionally asian....... I mean really, who cares? I care that they come in and do their job and are not lazy, my only prejudice is against laziness........ Being in management I can honestly tell you I would not give a rats orifice if you had dread locks, you best come to work and do your job though..... When my hospitals pencil pushers come by and see my tats and dont say anything I told them from the start that they better not tell me anything about anyone elses tats either, I havent heard a word in 2 years.....

I forgot to put LOL! I was joking about the depending on what state you are in statement...

[scoochy]

I say this: if you can tie them back so that they do not interfere with doing sterile procedures, go for it. Female RNs have long hair, and they are not turned away because of their hair. Keep a neat appearance to show professionalism; that does matter. I have worked with a number of men with dreads, and no one in management ever had a problem with them. If someone doesn't want to hire you because of dreads, move on...they judge a book by its cover, so to speak..