The retro nurse's outfit has returned

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
It is interesting to me that the majority of the responses revolved around the superficial ideas of looks and clothes. Ah well, typical female behavior.

Listen. This uniform shoud be a reminder of the days when nurses were nothing but the "Dr's handmaiden". I am pretty sure that there are nurses old enough to remember the massive workloads, the gross disrepect of the Drs, and the often subtle intellectual insult that is so often associated with that white uniform. People who were white are not going to be doing too much ladies.

I cant help but feel that 1/2 a century of sacrifice and protest was for nothing. We are now going back to the days when nurses are given unbelievable work loads, is often disrespected and work in petty environment where the emphasis is looks. Oh wait, they are already here. :twocents:

It's funny how you talk about the uniform insulting the woman, all while you insult woman.

You also keep addressing ladies, are men not nurses?

People should care about how they look, looks aren't the only thing, but first impressions go far, people should WANT to look put together and presentable. That isn't a bad thing.

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
Here is an easy way to tell the nurse from housekeeper: the nurse has a stethoscope. But really I wouldn't mind going retro every now and then.

So do the aides. It is confusing to tell who is who at my hospital. Not the housekeeping because they had uniforms they wore and always had cleaning supplies. But the badges are not easy to read and often get flipped and the aides, ward clerks, nurses, charges all look the same. RT wore black, volunteers had uniforms, so did a few other specialized areas.

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It is interesting to me that the majority of the responses revolved around the superficial ideas of looks and clothes. Ah well, typical female behavior.

Listen. This uniform shoud be a reminder of the days when nurses were nothing but the "Dr's handmaiden". I am pretty sure that there are nurses old enough to remember the massive workloads, the gross disrepect of the Drs, and the often subtle intellectual insult that is so often associated with that white uniform. People who were white are not going to be doing too much ladies.

I cant help but feel that 1/2 a century of sacrifice and protest was for nothing. We are now going back to the days when nurses are given unbelievable work loads, is often disrespected and work in petty environment where the emphasis is looks. Oh wait, they are already here. :twocents:

Guess you told me. *snap snap snap*

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Specializes in Oncology.
Wow. You associate police officers, the military, paramedics as "entry level" workers? I'll tell that to my best friend in the RCMP and my husband who's in the military. Both have served their country for over 25 years and hold a rank far above "entry level".

Clothes don't make the professional. The attitude and skills are the important things.

Fair point. I was trying to picture doctors, lawyers, pharmacists, teachers, professors, or CEOs all going to work dressed alike wearing the same thing everyday and wasn't envisioning it.

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Specializes in ER, OB, MED/Surg, Administration.
It is interesting to me that the majority of the responses revolved around the superficial ideas of looks and clothes. Ah well, typical female behavior.

Listen. This uniform shoud be a reminder of the days when nurses were nothing but the "Dr's handmaiden". I am pretty sure that there are nurses old enough to remember the massive workloads, the gross disrepect of the Drs, and the often subtle intellectual insult that is so often associated with that white uniform. People who were white are not going to be doing too much ladies.

I cant help but feel that 1/2 a century of sacrifice and protest was for nothing. We are now going back to the days when nurses are given unbelievable work loads, is often disrespected and work in petty environment where the emphasis is looks. Oh wait, they are already here. :twocents:

The problem is that everyone else shouldn't be wearing scrubs and trying to look like the nurse. The other departments should be specifically color coded and let the nurses wear their scrubs.

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The white dress and cap has been gone so long that bringing them back would make me feel like I am wearing a costume instead of a uniform.

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So, I went to my orthopedic clinic 2 days ago, and I wondered if I could tell everyone apart. There was a woman in the waiting room who walked around me that looked like a nurse, but then she started bagging up the trash. I couldn't see her name tag. I don't know where it was. Then, the woman who took me back and did my vitals had on scrubs, but she also had on a jacket which was half covering up her name tag. She probably thought I was crazy, staring and squinting, but I finally saw, Medical Assistant. Then finally, after the appointment, when the doctor wasn't even wearing a lab coat, the nurse came in, and he had his name tag visible but it was really tiny writing. Sooooo, I agree something needs to be done, but I don't necessarily think that nurses should have to go back to caps and tights and dresses. I think that's a little extreme in my opinion, but I'm just a pre-nursing student so I haven't worked as an RN, but I've been on the other side plenty of times.

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Specializes in LTC, office.

I could do white uniforms again, no problem. But hats and pantyhose? NO WAY!

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Specializes in Emergency, Trauma, Critical Care.

At my work the nurses take the trash out of the patient's rooms at end of shift.......probably just adds to the confusion.

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I don't have a problem with wearing white (or some other solid color) again (except you could always tell what I had for lunch when I wore white!)

As for the cap crap-our nursing program had an attractive cap BUT you actually need more hair than what I have on my head to get it to stay in place. I had a horrible time getting it to stay put. NO WAY am I going back to that!!!!

I always said that if I had to wear a hat...so did the guys!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

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Specializes in Rodeo Nursing (Neuro).
How about, not have everyone ELSE wear scrubs? There is no need for housekeeping or HUC's to wear them, I think that's the bigger confusion than anything. :twocents:

Okay, so you're not crazy. Or maybe we both are.

Honestly, I really think what would help with patient satisfaction would be if hospital administrators wore serafuku (Japanese schoolgirl uniforms).

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Okay, so you're not crazy. Or maybe we both are.

Honestly, I really think what would help with patient satisfaction would be if hospital administrators wore serafuku (Japanese schoolgirl uniforms).

Pass the brain bleach:eek:

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