Tattoos in the workplace

[KB4848]

Hey all!

There was recently an email sent out by our manager talking about dress code and how patients or other staff can ask us to cover our tattoos if they are offended by them. There's no actually hospital policy stating we aren't allowed to have tattoos or that they absolutely must be covered up, I believe the policy states that they must be covered as much as possible. I see more staff with tattoos than not these days. I have one on my arm and some days it's just too hot to wear long sleeves so it's not always covered. I personally want more but after my manager deiscovered one on my arm she told me not to go getting anymore and that if I do I won't be able to go much further in nursing if I'm covered in tattoos. Which I find ridiculous. I've never had a patient or anyone else complain about my tattoos being visible. She seems to be the only one that has a huge problem with it but tries to play it off like she doesn't. What's your take on the matter?

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

I am heavily tattooed and it has never held me back from any job. I am currently looking at two, possibly three offers in the near-term (and I cannot decide what I want to do, arrrrgh!). Tattoos + professional advancement are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

[DextersDisciple, BSN, RN]

That's what I'm sayin, and honestly what would happen if someone came up to me and told me to cover my tattoo and I didn't have anything to cover it with? Would I have to abandon my patients and be sent home? The sleeve I used to wear in nursing school to cover it drew more attention to my arm than my actual tattoo ever did, haha, people would ask me what was wrong with my arm all the time. I just think it's all quite silly honestly.

This! I did have to Wear a compression sleeve at one hospital and the patients thought I had lymphadema!

[subee, MSN, CRNA]

I read a book by a child psychiatrist, Bruce Perry, who is expert in trauma - debriefed the Waco children. He thinks of heavy tattooing as a form of cutting which resonated with me. After many years of working with patients heavily inked, I always felt sorry for them to be spending all that money on ink instead of therapy. But that's just me and I'm not judging the quality of the person - just the quality of their happiness. I like to think that I would never hold it against the person in a hiring situation, but if all things were perfectly equal, I'm sure I'd chose the nurse without.

[Megan1977, MSN, EdD, RN]

Your manager may be more cognizant of the culture of your hospital and those around you than you are. In many places tattoos are not considered professional. They can be intimidating to older patients. She/He might be doing you a favor. I don' think it's personal.

Your response is spot on Wuzzie. While tattoos are becoming a part of everyday life, there is still a bias against nurses in the workplace showing their body art. Yes- the OP can have as many tattoos as she/he wants but don't be surprised because in many places you will still be judged on those tattoos. #RealLife

[Megan1977, MSN, EdD, RN]

Get used to it. That's how the world operates. It may not be right but it is what it is and I doubt one more tattooed nurse is going to change it. It's a business, they really don't care about your "book" and the patients shouldn't be expected to. Your lotus may be fine but somebody is bound to push it and put something offensive in a visible place because they aren't "defined by the man". You can thank them for the limits on personal expression. Some people don't know where to draw the line.

WORD... #RealLife

[Swellz]

I read a book by a child psychiatrist, Bruce Perry, who is expert in trauma - debriefed the Waco children. He thinks of heavy tattooing as a form of cutting which resonated with me. After many years of working with patients heavily inked, I always felt sorry for them to be spending all that money on ink instead of therapy. But that's just me and I'm not judging the quality of the person - just the quality of their happiness. I like to think that I would never hold it against the person in a hiring situation, but if all things were perfectly equal, I'm sure I'd chose the nurse without.

There's a lot I'd like to unpack here but I'll just say that as a person who used to harm themself and a nurse with tattoos that they were not remotely similar experiences for me.

This debate reminds me of my nose piercing. I loved it but when I got hired from a tech to a nurse my new manager told me it had to go. There was a policy that did say it wasn't acceptable, but no one cared previously. She also didn't care about the two night nurses who had them. I will abide by whatever policy is in place but I wish they would be enforced universally. OPs policy is vague and really set up to create conflict where there need not be. As for me, my tattoos are all covered under scrubs and it's likely to stay that way so I don't run into a problem nowadays.

[walkingrock, ADN]

This is a direct quote of the policy: Employees who have a visible tattoo that could reasonably be considered degrading, offensive, or demeaning to...management must have it covered at all times while on health system property.

This is your answer! This is a very wishy washy policy that you can't win with if your management wishes to enforce it. If you wish to work at your present facility long term (provided that manager stays, and if not, the replacing one is like-minded), then keep all tattoos completely covered.

[monkey205]

MY son was denied signing up for military/Marines as he has a sleeve of tattoos. He was told had to be mid-arm or less. IF the marines can deny you, I would think your management could too. Sorry!

[Farawyn]

MY son was denied signing up for military/Marines as he has a sleeve of tattoos. He was told had to be mid-arm or less. IF the marines can deny you, I would think your management could too. Sorry!

Pathetic. Joining the armed forces is not longer a path for citizenship either. Way to go, America.

https://www.stripes.com/news/marines-tighten-restrictions-on-tattoos-1.61843

[Davey Do]

Speaking of tattoos, about 30 years ago, I was working a MN shift at Weed Rover Hospital on the chemical dependency unit. I was an LPN, going to school for my RN, and was called up to a medical unit in the morning to assess a young man for treatment.

I went into the room and saw a young man who had the HOB raised and was sitting on the upper part of the bed, clad only in pajama bottoms. I introduced myself, told him why I was there, and began asking him questions. All I remember him saying with big bug eyes was,"Dextromethorphan Hydrobromide Acid, man!" I thought "What's that?" and went to give my assessment results to the nurses.

Basically, I told them the patient needed to be assessed by a psychiatrist and possibly be transferred to psych. About that time, the young man's room mate came to the nurses station and informed us that the young man was acting weird and required attention.

I went into the patients' room and found the young man in the running shower, still clad in his pajama bottoms. As I stood there, the young man lunged at me saying, "Dextromethorphan Hydrobromide Acid, man!" The two of us went spinning into the hallway and went down to the floor, wrestled, I yelled out a code for security's assistance to the nurses, and got the young man into a hold from behind.

There, on his back, in beautiful dark blue Old English lettering were the words, "Dextromethorphan Hydrobromide Acid".

I thought, "Oh yeah- 'Dextromethorphan Hydrobromide'. That's cough syrup!"

[CBlover, BSN, RN]

I can't understand why your boss would comment that if you got more tats you wouldn't be able to go far in nursing basically. That's bs. I know male nurses with their whole chest and arms tattooed. They just wear long sleeves under their scrubs. Culture is shifting away from "COVER THOSE THANGS UP." It's becoming more and more accepted and that's fine with me.

[Golden_RN, MSN]

You are not just dealing with the hospital in which you currently work, you will probably deal with other employers and other policies in the future. I did work at an acute hospital that required all tattoos be covered. There were some very uncomfortable staff that had to wear shirts buttoned all the way up and buttoned down at the wrist!

Also, consider that in the future you may want to go into management or an executive/office setting and you may not make a great impression with visible tattoos.