No scrubs at work?

[LPNtoRNtoNP]

Hi all! I'm currently a LPN employed at an assisted living facility in NYC and we've recently been taken over by new management. They've slowly been introducing new policies and today they announced that nurses and HHAs will no longer be wearing scrubs. We will be wearing black pants (dickies, jeans?) and a polo shirt, which they haven't picked the color of yet. Currently this is the uniform of the housekeeping, maintenance, and dietary. Pretty much all of the nursing and HHA staff is upset. From my perspective it's not sanitary and can be confusing for the elderly population we care for. Geriatric patients (as well as everyone else) typically look for scrubs as the person to help them with. I said that they're going to be confused and asking dietary to take them to the bathroom because everyone looks the same! I'm looking for insight on this--do you think we have a right to be upset? What are your thoughts on nurses not wearing scrubs in an assisted living facility?

P.s. They want us to start calling it a "community" instead of a facility. Give me a break!

[benegesserit]

Why is it not sanitary? If it is sanitary enough for housekeeping, shouldn't it be sanitary enough for nursing?

I do agree about it being confusing for residents with cognitive deficits, especially since aging can lead to decreases in color perception. You could find studies on that if you wanted ammunition.

I think staff has good reason to be upset any time the dress code is changed, assuming they buy their own uniforms. Even if a stipend is provided to buy new clothing, you've suddenly got a wardrobe of scrubs you can no longer use.

[LPNtoRNtoNP]

We currently wear antimicrobial scrubs. I should've stated that above.

[psu_213, BSN, RN]

I answered the poll as "depends." I would have asked the questions "should nurses always wear scrubs at work?" To which I would answer "no"--there is no reason why nurses always have to be in scrubs in most care environments.

Are you wearing the same colors as housekeeping? If so this is not appropriate given that patients will get confused as to which individuals are caregivers and which are not.

[lindseylpn]

I work at a group home and we can wear whatever we want. Some days I wear scrubs but, currently I'm wearing sweat pants a tee shirt and crocs. Not wearing scrubs really isn't an issue and my patients know I'm the nurse but, I try not to wear nice clothes to work. I work nights and dress for comfort. If I worked at a large facility I'd prefer to wear scrubs though.

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

It looks nice in the few nursing homes that did this although they did khakis and a pale blue polo. There is little difference between scrubs and a dedicated uniform. Although it may be confusing when they are looking for the nurse or aide. They could try different colors but color coding doesn't mean much.

I am under the impression that antimicrobial scrubs are really to help reduce break down of the scrubs and aren't tested or meant to be considered more sanitary. At least that was the impression I had when I was researching them.