Tattoos and nursing

Diary/Dairy, RN · May 27, 2007

I have 5 tattoos and have never been to jail or done drugs.

I have a rosary and a blue flower on my right ankle/leg, 5 flowers on my lower back, a heart on my upper back, and the 5th element symbol on my right wrist. The only one I would consider having removed is the 5th element one - I am already tired of wearing long sleeves and the summer has not yet begun.

Swissangel · Jul 6, 2007

have tattoos, not mentally ill.
the director of my unit has a few.
my father is the ceo of a moderately sized company, and for christmas two years ago i gave him a tattoo (he, i and my brother went together, it was a symbol meaningful to our family). it's on his arm, fully visible in short sleeves.
classy gal, it's also common for people to be discriminated against because they are fat. so, do you also want to post a warning for all of those here who like to eat more than they like to exercise? what about posting warning women in general, since current research continues to suggest that men earn more than women. maybe what we all need are sex changes!
whatever. i'll continue to decorate my body the way i see fit. i have no desire to "achieve my potential" of becoming a stick-in-the-mud suit; and if i did, i wouldn't worry about my ink holding me back. can you believe my hospital hired me? pink hair, tattoos, advanced degrees, extensive work and teaching experience, multilingual; what were they thinking? most places are coming into the 21 century; many people my age have tattoos and piercings; and guess what, so do our directors, ceos, vps et other suits.
thanks for the face slap, but it was really unnecessary.

genial!

unfortunately some parts of the us (& some people everywhere, of course) don't see the need coming into the 21th century :smackingf:

as society we hopefully overcome any "rasisme"/discrimination and try to treat [color=lime]all human equal and i guess

as a nurse that is an ethical core beside ones personal cultur, religion, race or even "taste" ...to treat people equal and to be treated equally

to bring in a new "idea" and as your country drives things like surgial regeneration or breast enhancement

anyone knowing about an institution fired or just didn't employ a person because here tits were made?

probably not, but if there was, i'll pay him/her a bier :cheers:

competence & professionalism, like intelligence hasn't anything to do with ones outside, even your look doesn't match the local taste!

Montana88 · Nov 5, 2008

Thank goodness I'm not the only one! I'm currently a nursing student and have been taking quite a bit of flak mostly from older nurses I know about my 'unprofessional' appearance. I got rid of my pink hair before I began any clinicals, my surface bars and my tattoos are all able to hide easily under scrubs. Knowing I was going into nursing I planned things this way and so I'm not really sure what the big deal is. It bothers me a little that people are still so willing to judge based on appearances. I truly don't believe that anyone could be a lesser nurse simply due to how they look. Thank you for letting me know I'm not the only one lol

island40 · Nov 21, 2008

We took out piercings for clinic only (or put a bandaid over it and looked a little stupid). I've worked in at least 22 facilities (travel) and have never had a problem with tatoos. Only time I saw a collegue have difficulty was when the tat was on his face. It was distracting and reduced his credibilty.

traumahawk99 · Nov 22, 2008

once i worked with a nurse who had cheap, green tattos all over her face. she was actually a good nurse, once i got past the appearance.

dreamon · Nov 22, 2008

Can I wear a clear plastic tongue piercing in nursing school? I think they are called retainers? Flat on the top and a rubber stopper on the bottom.

No one will notice it, but I don't know if the policy is to NOT have piercings or just to NOT wear the jewelry.

nightshiftnut · Nov 23, 2008

Just thought I would add my take on the whole tat and piercing situation. Yes, it is our body to do as we please...to express who we are. Maybe I'll express my individuality by wearing a black bra and undies under my white scrubs. Real professional.....:icon_roll

flightnurse2b, LPN · Nov 23, 2008

Just thought I would add my take on the whole tat and piercing situation. Yes, it is our body to do as we please...to express who we are. Maybe I'll express my individuality by wearing a black bra and undies under my white scrubs. Real professional.....:icon_roll

you can wear whatever color undies you want under your white scrubs as long as you take good care of me. i've had worked with alot of unprofessional, rude and somewhat frightening nurses with no tattoos or peircings.

i have two tattoos and 5 peircings. the only peircings visible are in my ears and i only wear studs in one of the holes. my bellybutton is for me to look at and i dont think i will ever show my navel to my patients.

my tattoos are hidden, one on my low back and one on my hip. you wouldnt know i had them unless i showed them to you.

that can be your take. dont get a tattoo or a peircing. but dont judge others with them. they might just be a kick butt super professional nurse.

Iam46yearsold · Nov 23, 2008

I am heavily tattooed and have multiple piercings in multiple locations. I am also a very good nurse. The tats and piercings do not and never have affected my nursing. Do I stand out in a crowd, yes. But with scrubs and my lab coat on very few if any show. But that isnt the reson I wear the lab coat. I just like a lot of pockets to keep things in.

jjensen · Dec 12, 2008

I have 4 tattoos and they are all hidden. I purposely did that so I would not have to worry about it. I am a professional at work, but when I am out, I have a fun side to me.

WalkieTalkie, RN · Dec 17, 2008

Ok so I have a question. I am going to be starting school soon to be a LPN. My question is I have a pretty good sized tattoo on my left wrist. It isnt offensive, its very pretty. It is a dragonfly. Do you all think I will have problems with employment and people taking me seriously after school is done. I want honest opinions. I will not get offended by anyhting any of you have to say. I am just trying to get all info I can. Thank You!

Even though you perceive it to be "pretty" you may find that a lot of people think otherwise. My best advice would be to wear long sleeves or a bracelet/watch/some other type of jewelery to cover it up during your interview. That way you won't have to worry about whether or not the person interviewing you is listening to what you have to say or looking in disgust at your tattoo.

I have several piercings in my ears (6 in the right, 5 in the left) and I always take them out when I do interviews. I also have tattoos and will likely get more, but they are in spots easily covered by clothing as I know that some perceive them to be unprofessional.

Of course, I always wear my earrings at work now. My hospital does not have a policy against the number of earrings, but I did have one crotchety bag of a manager once who told me not to wear them. Of course, this same manager also made me put on a scrub cap for awhile when one of my friends accidentally cut my hair too short with clippers. To her, I simply smiled, nodded my head, put on the cap and them promptly removed it when she left for the day. I'm not even sure the hair thing was legal for her to do. My hair was not dyed or anything, I simply think she perceived it to be too short for a woman. In any case, it was right after I had started working at the hospital I am employed at now, and I didn't want to risk losing my new job by arguing about hair and earrings.

I have gotten a lot of earring compliments by patients, even a few elderly patients who told me they wish they had as many. I've never heard anyone say anything negative about them, but occasionally some (mostly elderly men) will say funny things like "what happens when you walk through an airport?" and stuff like that, but overall it's not a big deal and I certainly don't think anyone has been offended by them (other than the aforementioned manager). It's not like I have big dangly hoops or anything.

My mom was in the hospital recently, and her care tech had some really neat visible tattoos. My mother liked them (she recently got her first at age 58), but I can imagine that other more snobbish and "traditional" people may not want to see these types of things on their caregivers. Overall, tattoos and body piercings are becoming more acceptable, but we need to be reasonably modest (i.e. having a lip piercing with a chain that connects to one in your ear is probably a bad idea)... LOL.

statphleb SN · Dec 24, 2008

Unfortunately to make extra money for nursing school I worked at HOOTER's :imbarand there none of your tats could show. I would cover mine up with theatrical flesh tone makeup. It can be alittle pricey but I assure you it covers tattoos flawlessly. Good luck!