Tattoos/Piercings in the workplace?

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I haven't seen a thread like this so I thought it would be interesting to see everybody's opinion.

What do you guys think about tattoos and/or piercings in the work place? I know it's deemed "unprofessional", but let's be honest, everyone has different thoughts about it.

Do you have any policies for it at your job?

I'm just curious. I have a tiny lip ring that can't even be noticed unless someone is dead in front of my face. I know I'll most likely have to take it out before I start nursing school-which is fine with me. As for tattoos, I only have one which can be easily covered so I'm not worried about that at all.

Do any of you have any tattoos/piercings? If so, where are they?

Specializes in ICU, PACU, OR.

Unfortunately there is a stigma attached to multi piercing and tattoos that lend themselves to thinking that these folks practice risky behavior. So while I don't have a tattoo, my son does and I wasn't happy about it, but it's his body and he has to deal with it, and pay for it and eventual adaptations to them. All I ask is that they are done in licensed place, disposable gloves changed between people, and the place is clean/disinfected and the needles and ink are opened from a package in front of the recipient of the ink. That's about the best I can ask for. If I was an employer, I would be careful to instruct new potential hires to the dress code and look at their experience, their responses to interview questions and determine how they work during the probationary period just like any other potential employee. If they past the muster on that then the applicant can determine if the place is a good fit for them or not-sad to think it would be about tattoo toleration.

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I'm not sure what he policy is on piercings, but tattoos must be covered. I know for a fact that tattoos have kept some at my hospital from getting hired or being promoted.

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Where I work, we are allowed to have one small hand/wrist tattoo visible, while I don't have any tattoo's that can be seen while at work, I do have a micro nose stud and a micro tragus piercing and none of my patients nor administrators have ever said anything about either. However, if, something is ever said, I have spacers available to wear to work and I would just wear my "jewelry" on my own time. That being said, at one place I worked I had to cover my nose piercing (it was new and I couldn't take the stud out yet) and more of my patient's questioned me about the Band-Aid on my nose than ever did about the stud itself.

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I have tattoos on my upper arms and I have zero problem covering them up for clinicals. I wear a white shirt with 3/4-length sleeves under my scrubs. It helps that I'm often a little chilly. My school has a no jewelry and no visible tattoos policy. That said, even if they didn't I would probably cover mine. I've read about studies showing that they negatively affect the patients' perception of the care they received, even among young patients and patients who have their own tattoos and body piercings. Go figure.

Of course, I just briefly looked on pubmed and couldn't turn up any such studies with free full text.

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I'm in dialysis, I don't now about the formal corporate policy but personally I dislike tattoos especially on females. Yesterday 1 of the guys who has them all over his arms & legs said "they're becoming acceptable" & I said no, not really, they're just more common and they accepted by younger people. I told him not to forget that mgmt will be filled for another 20 years w/ people like myself from a generation whose 1st thought is still gonna be "prison." I do not find them flattering on anyone and especially feel they're ugly in ANY form on a girl. Therefore I'll always look twice at dirty ink on someone and wonder why they did that? Yeah I know... "self expression."

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Is it ok for a Registered Nurse to have a tongue piercing? Even the clear ones so that the patient or whoever doesnt see it.

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I'm in dialysis, I don't now about the formal corporate policy but personally I dislike tattoos especially on females. Yesterday 1 of the guys who has them all over his arms & legs said "they're becoming acceptable" & I said no, not really, they're just more common and they accepted by younger people. I told him not to forget that mgmt will be filled for another 20 years w/ people like myself from a generation whose 1st thought is still gonna be "prison." I do not find them flattering on anyone and especially feel they're ugly in ANY form on a girl. Therefore I'll always look twice at dirty ink on someone and wonder why they did that? Yeah I know... "self expression."

There is opinion, and there is hate. This is hate. While you're on your hate trail, kf15- please also advise the few remaining female Holocaust survivors of how 'dirty' they are to have 'allowed' themselves to be branded by tatoos. It is unbelievable that this post was permitted on this site.

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Specializes in Med/Surg & Hospice & Dialysis.

There is opinion, and there is hate. This is hate. While you're on your hate trail, kf15- please also advise the few remaining female Holocaust survivors of how 'dirty' they are to have 'allowed' themselves to be branded by tatoos. It is unbelievable that this post was permitted on this site.

Funny, prison doesn't show up on my background check.

To the poster prior to this one... Do you really degrade your patients based on tattoos? That's much less acceptable than ink any day!

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

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There is opinion, and there is hate. This is hate. While you're on your hate trail, kf15- please also advise the few remaining female Holocaust survivors of how 'dirty' they are to have 'allowed' themselves to be branded by tatoos. It is unbelievable that this post was permitted on this site.

As a rule of thumb anyone who goes immediately into Hitler and the Holocaust is a billion miles outside the converstation. It's not really worth my time elaborating on my post, but I CLEARLY said my dislike of tattoos was personal and is how I feel.

Where do you get "hate" from? Certainly not me.

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As a rule of thumb anyone who goes immediately into Hitler and the Holocaust is a billion miles outside the converstation. It's not really worth my time elaborating on my post, but I CLEARLY said my dislike of tattoos was personal and is how I feel.

Where do you get "hate" from? Certainly not me.

Here's the definition: Hate | Define Hate at Dictionary.com

In my opinion, 'dirty' and 'ugly' fall right inline with it.

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No, that's not what was said. Competency, skill and moral character aren't going to be the thing that people see when the professional walks through the door; those aren't immediately recognizable traits. But face and body modifications are. A professional image and appearance are what ALLOWS the professional person to GAIN another's trust.

@RNsRWe - After re-reading the post a few times, I can see where you are coming from. Unfortunately, there are assumptions about a persons competency based on physical appearance.

I was trying to stress that, for me, an individual walking into a situation in a suit and tie (or dress and heels) does not convey competency or skill. Yes, he has dressed in what society deems a 'professional manner' but this does not speak to his ability to live up to a certain level of functioning as a member of his profession.

But in retrospect I do see how my response can be interpreted as somewhat snarky and I apologize. It is somewhat of a hot button topic for me.

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