No Scrubs Allowed.. opinions??

theRNJedi · Mar 17, 2015

Healthcare organizations and medical facilities (as with any company) choose the uniforms they want their employees to wear. Although what you describe is less common, as most clinical personnel wear scrubs within the health care system at large, it is not a regulation, law, or standard that nurses must wear scrubs as their uniform; so technically they can do this. I too have worked at a hospital where all staff wore the same black colored scrubs (from housekeeping to nurses to cafeteria workers) and I empathize with your frustration and agree it confuses guests and patients...repeatedly.

I do think the idea of not having 'titles' on your badge is illogical, and I would never agree to it as a leader, but I can kinda see the direction they are going with this. Unfortunately, it practically strips away your instant recognition of being a nurse, something you worked hard to achieve and are proud of. It just means you will have to demonstrate your nursing knowledge and skills through outstanding professionalism, patient care, and leadership.

I can appreciate the admin's effort to cultivate an atmosphere of shared value and worth among all members of the team, but in my experience admin who do this are not aware of the confusion and frustration it causes for front-line staff, patients, or guests. This is a classic example of not having nursing representation on admin committees to advocate and represent the clinical staff; it's a top-down management approach where leaders who are tucked away in admin offices are making decisions for how everyone else in the organization will work. This style of leadership is old-school and not congruent with contemporary styles of leadership that is more collaborative and democratic. Again though, it's noble that there is an effort to create a culture where everyone feels equal; it's just that making everyone wear the same thing with no titles on badges may be an impractical solution to that cause.

Hopefully there is a process in place where you and others can convey your frustrations and propose a policy revision for a uniform change. Speak to your nursing leadership, assess if there is critical mass among the staff who collectively agree with you and initiate a proposal. You could also consider a compromise in what you propose, such as maybe not requesting every nurse wear scrubs, but rather keep the khakis and change up the color of the shirt or design to differentiate roles. (i.e., nurses wear stripes, aids wear solids, non-clinical wear two-tone, etc...). Good luck. At the end of day, if this is your biggest problem with your job, you're doing great!

-theRNJedi

lovinglife2015 · Mar 17, 2015

If you don't like the policy, dust off your resume and leave. There is little that you can do to change their business model, even if the other staff agree with you.

Nibbles1 · Mar 17, 2015

My first nursing job was khakis and a polo top. It looked professional because some nurses think its okay to wear sloppy scrubs. Im 40 years old and people think im 22. I wear navy blue scrubs now and im still told "you dont look old enough to be a nurse." So the uniform excuse wont fly with me. I feel like you want to wear scrubs because 1) you are a new nurse. 2) you want to feel older and get respected. Nothing and i mean nothing is wrong with that.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2015

I feel that if nursing could wear scrubs, resident's families or other facilities could easily distinguish us from other staff members. We also are not allowed to have titles on our name tags (lpn, cna, etc) which doesn't make any of this easier.

From personal experience, wearing scrubs, medical uniforms and titles on the name badge will not help the abilities of families and visitors to clearly distinguish who's who.

Everyone at my workplace wears scrubs and titles on name badges. Although I am the charge RN and house supervisor, families often approach me assuming I am a cook, housekeeper, clerk or patient care tech until told otherwise. While I don't look young for my age, I belong to a racial/ethnic minority that is stereotyped for being undereducated.

Nurse4892 · Mar 17, 2015

Thank you everyone for your opinions! I was just curious if this was common and what others thought about it. While I do agree with the company's reasoning behind it, I still believe that nursing staff should have something (different uniform color maybe?) to distinguish them from other staff members.. It would be easier on visitors. But I know the company will not change its policy and I really have no other complaints about my job, so I'd say that's a good thing!

LittleCandles · Mar 18, 2015

I'm 27 and with scrubs, being behind the nurses station or behind my cart, and with my name tag saying "LPN charge nurse" I am always assumed to be a CNA and some of my coworkers who are CNAs are asked if they're nurses. I get "you look too young to be a nurse" I've even gotten residents who can't believe I am a nurse because how young I am (I work in the dementia unit).

No matter where you go you're gonna have this issue. If you like your job I wouldn't complain. Uniform is the lest of most SNF issues.

hayest · Mar 19, 2015

As a patient and as a family member who had parents in nursing homes/assisted living faclities, I would rather see the staff in khaki/navy/black docker style pants and a polo shirt instead of the messy/wrinkle/dirty scrubs so many would wear. The pants and polo shirt would give more of a distinguished look and relaxed atmosphere, as well as inviting to the visitors. I have been suggesting khaki pants and a polo shirt for our doctor's office. One reason being they are not nurses, only medical assistants, and it's deceiving to the patients, as the majority of the patients think that the MA's are nurses and they are not. Also, the scrubs that I have seen them wear have been dirty, wrinkled, and faded. Half the time the scrubs look as if the MA's pulled them from the bottom of the laundry basket or under their bed. The other dress that I feel is unprofesional is when they wear oversized sweatshirts of the professional football team or baseball team. Sloppy look, along with messy hair, poor hygiene.

caliotter3 · Mar 19, 2015

Their establishment, they set the uniform. We rebelled against a dorky name tag one time, guess who won out on that one? If the employer pays for the uniforms, ok with me. I'll save my good uniforms for my other job, or my next job.

EmergencyRN22 · Mar 19, 2015

I personally enjoy the color distinction of our scrubs, even though working in a bloody, unpredictable ER I always wish they would allow us to wear anything but all white.

Same about the badges, I like to quickly identify who's who. Sometime people will tell me their name and I don't hear it (don't have the best hearing) then I can catch a quick, innocent glance at their badge.

Dont think you're going to be able to change your work place dress attire. Either deal with it or look for another job. Honestly, I feel it's such a minor issue if that's your biggest complaint.

Goodlu k :)

hayest · Mar 19, 2015

Even though I mentioned that I would prefer to see khaki/navy/black pants and a polo shirt for the physician offices and/or assisted living/nursing home settings. I do agree about color distinction at a hospital. My husband was in the hospital a year ago and I couldn't tell who was who in the hospital. They all wore anything they wanted. I do know when the hospital first opened, each person had a distinctive scrub color from nurses, patient care tech's, housekeeping, etc. Now, it's anything. It doesn't look professional. Not that I would want to see the white uniforms again, but at least you knew who the nurses were. So many people go in and out of rooms, a patient has no idea who they are. Just sitting there and watching was confusing as a visitor. I had to ask a question, the first person was not a nurse, yet they were in scrubs. It took three tries before I finally found a nurse. I think the scrubs need to be one style and color for the nurses. Name badges too would be appropriate.

OCNRN63, RN · Mar 19, 2015

If everyone wears the same uniform, it gives the illusion that the facility is better staffed than it actually is. It has nothing to do with a "Kumbayah, we're all in this together" sentiment.