Nail Manicures

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Just wanted some feedback from nurses. My facility allows nurses to have get nail manicure including polish, gels, and dip powders. Just wondering if if anyone has these manicures and if they hold up with frequent hand washing and rolling and lifting patients constantly.

Please save your comments about how "real nurses don't wear nails." I practice hand hygiene and wear gloves and wash hands all day. It doesn't make me any less of a nurse.

Thanks in advance!

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

You may certainly put whatever type or color of polish you like on your toenails.

Please save your comments instructing people how to answer your post. If you put it out there, you get the answers you get.

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Specializes in Acute and Critical Care.

In direct patient care, you're putting your patients and yourself at risk with nail polish and artificial nails. This is not a judgment, this is based on facts.

"However, individuals who wear artificial nails are more likely to harbor gram-negative pathogens on their fingertips than are those who have natural nails, both before and after hand washing." (Medscape: Medscape Access)

Based on research, artificial nails should not be used at all in direct patient care and if you want to use nail polish, it should not be older than 24 h and/or chipped.

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Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

i seriously would ask for another caregiver if mine had fake nails. Ewww!

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I would review AORN standards for nail care and any other Nursing direct care standards to get an objective evidence based opinion

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Specializes in medsurg, progressive care.

I get gel manicures sometimes and they typically last me almost 3 weeks before the first chip, which is when I take them off. Regular nail polish comes off within a day so I don't even bother, unless it's for a very specific event and I'm off work (ie, wedding) or when going on vacation. I also try not to use hand sanitizer a lot since I seem to be insanely sensitive to it regardless of nails, so this timeframe might vary if you're using more sanitizer instead of soap/water.

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Specializes in Case Manager/Administrator.

I may be biased on looking pretty with my hands I live on a small ranch and my hands look pretty rough all the time. My nails are always short and I have terrible hang nails. My hands and nails are clean though.

Reading this I thought of all the policies I have written for no "fake nails and direct patient care". I am reminded of a very pro-citizen state where everyone seems to be an individual exercises this individuality. The University of California San Francisco has a very good policy against the use of "fake nails" they cite many evidenced based journal articles and the outbreaks of the organism cause by those "fake nails" which include Candida osteomyelitis and Diskitis after spine surgery that implicates artificial nails. One article they do cite is the 46 NICU little ones who acquired P. aeruginosa (16 died) and linked to 2 nurses one had artificial nails and one had long natural nails.

I think of not allowing artificial nails in direct patient care this way; construction workers wear hard hats and steel toed boots, skyscrapers wear harness, professions where you need to wear respirators (chemical engineers, firemen must be clean shaven so as to not interfere with the face to face seal or function of the respirator) nurses must keep their nails in a manner that will not possible contribute to the spread of infection, I ask why would you not want to do this for your patient?

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Specializes in NICU.

My facility will send you home for fake nails,polish and chipped polish,I agree with this.Also the wearing of rings is gross with stuff ending up underneath,be it soap,scum,cream whatever. Since it has been proven to harm patients,especially vulnerable ones I would certainly want to prevent any harm.

I used to love thos nice tips and pretty it looked but no longer wear.Not even clear polish.

The other side of the coin is the many persons that come in contact with patients and yet ,it is always the nurse getting singed.

i have seen doctors with nasty looking chipped nail polish,long nails,and nothing is done about that.

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Small baby nails, polished.

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I get gel manicures sometimes and they typically last me almost 3 weeks before the first chip, which is when I take them off. Regular nail polish comes off within a day so I don't even bother, unless it's for a very specific event and I'm off work (ie, wedding) or when going on vacation. I also try not to use hand sanitizer a lot since I seem to be insanely sensitive to it regardless of nails, so this timeframe might vary if you're using more sanitizer instead of soap/water.

Get the magic top coat, or whatever it is called. Regular polish, yes, first chip it is gone, and no sanitizer is how I roll.

I also work in a school. I rarely touch anyone.

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I am in school health... If I am touching a student I have gloves on since it usually involves blood or bodily fluids. So if my nails do get a little longer its not a super big issue.

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I work on an telemetry/neuro unit. I get no-chip manicures pretty regularly. i can generally make them last 2-4 weeks. The trick for me it always keeping them really short.

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