Nurses with tattoos, is it acceptable?

Nurses General Nursing

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I will be starting my BSN class this second week of November. So technically, I am not yet a nurse but soon will be. I have been long delaying my plan of getting a tattoo on my right shoulder blade. It has always been my dream to have this one tattoo but I am now apprehensive because of the different feedback that I am getting. Have you heard of any employment trouble if the nurse that is applying has a tattoo or piercing?

I do want to get my tattoo soon but I am not getting the right answers. If this, one way or the other would affect possible employment in the future, especially that I am planning to work overseas. Any enlightenment will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Specializes in School Nursing.

I have three, none show under scrubs. My ankle ones do show on field day when I wear shorts (school nurse here), but I talked to the principal in advance and no one really cared. We have a couple teachers with ink on ankles/legs that show when they wear skirts.

I am getting a wrist tattoo this week which will be easily covered by a wide banded watch (hint: buy the watch first and have the tattoo artist design the tat to fit under it. Much easier than getting inked then trying to find a watch to cover it up!) I may also get one on the other wrist, but it will be in that flesh toned ink that you have to look really, really hard to see.

Specializes in LTC Family Practice.

Mine are older than dirt but they are also where the sun don't shine ;)

Specializes in school nursing, ortho, trauma.

I worked in white scrubs so very observant patients would occasionally ask about my tattoos if the light hit me the right way, but beyond that it has never been an issue. A shoulder blade will certainly be covered by your uniform so there should be no issues. Just think twice once you get the tattoo bug and want to cover yourself (cause we all know tattoos are addictive) in body art.

Specializes in ER.
Mine are older than dirt but they are also where the sun don't shine ;)

haaaa!!!!!!!!!

Specializes in being a Credible Source.

Tats are becoming the new normal...

Those of us who are un-inked may soon be the ones looked at askance.

Ditto - If it's covered by short-sleeve scrubs then you've nothing to be concerned about.

No offense to those wearing body art, it's a free country after all. Just curious, does anyone worry about what it's going to look like when they get old? The elderly navy men who have the tattoos on the forearms, for instance- a furry anchor or hursuit hula girl is probably not what they envisioned long ago.

Specializes in School Nursing.

I just figure that by the time I am that old, everything else looks junky so why not the tats also :) It has never really bothered me.

Specializes in school nursing, ortho, trauma.

that's part of the fun - i know a lady that has a tattoo of a horse on her breast that has gracefully evolved into a giraffe!

Specializes in ER.
No offense to those wearing body art, it's a free country after all. Just curious, does anyone worry about what it's going to look like when they get old? The elderly navy men who have the tattoos on the forearms, for instance- a furry anchor or hursuit hula girl is probably not what they envisioned long ago.

well it's going to look as the rest of the body will - unattractive. So what if the tattoos look bad, it'll just detract from the other sagging/wrinkled parts! I crack up at those women who have implants and they're the only thing that is young and perky on an older body. Pretty funny! Who really cares at the end of the day? As long as you're healthy.

Specializes in Rodeo Nursing (Neuro).

I'm not a fan of tatoos, personally, but a lot of my coworkers have them, usually in places that aren't normally exposed. I know this because they show them to me. I'm not a fan of tatoos, but I am rather a fan of women showing me places that aren't normally exposed. So I have mixed emotions. I'm not sure how tats would be received abroad--it probably depends on where abroad. In Germany, for example, they might be mandatory. In Saudi Arabia--well, how would they ever know?

Piercings are another matter. I'm not a fan of them, either. I think my facility has a policy that you can have up to two sets of earrings, non-dangly. Nose, eyebrow, etc. are supposed to be taken out or covered during work. My personal esthetic aside, I'd advise caution on possible avenues for infection. Intact skin is one of your best defenses against the fun things we run into on a fairly regular basis. Still, I don't know of anyone catching anything nasty through a piercing. Care with universal precautions should keep you safe. And I've worked many a shift with small outbreaks of poison ivy--I'm super sensitive to it, and my cats like to play in it. (I think they are actually desensitizing me--I haven't had a bad case in years.) If it's weeping, I keep it covered, but it's still at least as much a risk as a piercing, probably much more so than an old piercing.

I work in neurosciences, so we see a number of patients with dementia and/or psych histories, or just short-term confusion. In that enviroment, you don't need anything extra for them to grab.

Frankly, I'll be glad when fashion swings back to more naturalistic-looking women. Off course, I'll be 90, by then. But I'm planning to be a dirty old man, so that's okay.

Yes, ifyou keep it covered up, then ou should be fine.I remember one time during clinicals, after all the drilling our instructors had given us abour covering

tattooes, piercings and all that. We got to the PACU and saw this male nurse with tattoos on both his arms very visible

and an earrig in his ear. We couldn't help it- WE JUST STARED.Our thoughts was the he must be pretty good at what he did.Lol

I'm 99.9999999999999999% positive that you will have NO problem at all, and if you do, it will be in nursing school, not at work. Most instructors that I had gave people a hard time for visible ones, doesn't sound like yours will be visible. But where I work, we have a policy against visible tattoos and piercings that aren't one hole in your earlobe and no piercings for men...however, I would say at least 4 women that I work with have tongue piercings and all of the women that I work with have more than one ear piercing, and all of the men that I work with have their ear pierced...don't even get me started on all of the visible tattoos let alone all of the colorful hairstyles out there...I'm not saying all of the hospitals out there will be as lenient as the number one ranked hospital in the nation (haha), but my guess is that you'll be fine with a shoulder tat.

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