Wearing Scrubs Outside of the Workplace

[NewGradRN114]

I just wanted to post a question to see what others think of wearing scrubs outside of their place of work. I live in a small town about 30 minutes away from the hospital I work at and sometimes after work I try and get some errands done in the city before driving home. I do this so I don't have to make another trip to the city on my days off. I have a locker at work but it's just big enough to fit a purse so I can't even bring anything to change into after my shift. I would love to hear any opinions people have on this topic!

[Julius Seizure]

Inadequate facilities for the staff would be another issue.

Working from home might be a solution. Never a line. I have been known to wear the same jammies for 3 days in a row though, talk about disgusting.

As long as you dont rub them against the produce

[Lpn-to-RN]

I wear my scrubs out after work to run errands and I do not see anything wrong with it. I do not think I am exposing the public to anything more then they themselves expose each other to, just pay attention in the bathroom most people walk out without washing their hands and if they do only half actually wash them correctly.

[NuGuyNurse2b]

I wear my scrubs out after work to run errands and I do not see anything wrong with it. I do not think I am exposing the public to anything more then they themselves expose each other to, just pay attention in the bathroom most people walk out without washing their hands and if they do only half actually wash them correctly.

I have a problem with all the arguments presented here along these lines. It's basically coming down to "other people don't wash their hands, I as a nurse shouldn't have to, either" - and I think that's the wrong approach. the general mass doesn't know or care about infections - we in the nursing field do. That's the difference.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

Inadequate facilities for the staff would be another issue.

Working from home might be a solution. Never a line. I have been known to wear the same jammies for 3 days in a row though, talk about disgusting.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

I have a problem with all the arguments presented here along these lines. It's basically coming down to "other people don't wash their hands, I as a nurse shouldn't have to, either" - and I think that's the wrong approach. the general mass doesn't know or care about infections - we in the nursing field do. That's the difference.

OK. So don't wear your scrubs out in public. If you encounter this old nurse in the grocery store at 8 am, don't look. I promise you, I've washed my hands. Hand washing is different from running to the grocery store after work.

[Linda Langton RN]

I work in an outpatient preop clinic...my scrubs are never soiled, hands are washed before leaving work, sanitized always before going into a store ( especially food stores), I quite often to errands in my scrubs before heading home, have never been bothered by anyone, and see all kinds of other people in scrubs. I don't have a problem with it.

[la_chica_suerte85, BSN, RN]

There have been some articles recently about why healthcare workers shouldn't wear their scrubs outside of work. I don't really mind. I don't work in a locked down infectious disease unit and I have pretty decent hand hygiene practices. I also have not been approached by other people in need of assessment by a licensed independent practitioner. If I was, I would direct them to their LIP and emphasize they NOT go to the ED (unless it was actually warranted). Otherwise, I sometimes wear mine in public if I have to (there's always potlucks that I'm unprepared for and a grocery store right next to the hospital so many of us are always in there in our scrubs). It's when people wear their blood streaked OR scrubs to the cafeteria in the hospital (or said grocery store) that make me go .

[Nursey Me]

If all these nasty germs are truly so easy to spread from our scrubs to the produce at the grocery store, wouldn't us nurses be sick a whole lot more from getting germs from our own scrubs? I mean, we are wearing them.

[heinz57]

So....where are these freebies at, and do they include donuts?

Yes, Dunkin' Donuts had specials for those in uniform like the Flight team and EMS.

For our teams we get 50% off in most restaurants. Free movies during the week. Free metro transit rides if in uniform with ID.

Many will put on a fresh uniform to go out to the movies or even to a restaurant off duty. For the Flight or CCT team, we usually shower and put on a clean uniform before going out for something to eat. We always have extra uniforms especially in the summer.

Plus, a lot of companies give us great discounts.

[heinz57]

If all these nasty germs are truly so easy to spread from our scrubs to the produce at the grocery store, wouldn't us nurses be sick a whole lot more from getting germs from our own scrubs? I mean, we are wearing them.

Who says they aren't getting sick or making their kids sick if they hug them before washing? I have known employees who seem to always be sick and they are often the ones who believe they can't get sick so they don't adhere to a few commonsense preventative measures.

Based on the comments here about how dirty grocery stores and the general public areas are, there are good reasons why some of us don't wear our uniforms to work. It is also why some specialty units like NICU/PICU/CVIC/OR either supply uniforms or insist on their employees changing at work.

I have enough respect for my patients, my loved ones and the general public to do my part to reduce infections. I can't change everyone but I will try not to add to a problem either. As I said before, I change at work. But, if I didn't, I would hope I have enough sense to not go mingle with food if I have been doing direct patient care involving close contact.

I did mention as Flight and CCT Team members we did go to the occasional restaurant in a clean uniform. But, that are usually the adult teams. The NICU teams do not leave the hospital except to transport.

[NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN]

Gross...to say the carts at Wal Mart are as dirty as clothes with hospital pathogens on them is catchy and hip, but it is just demonstrably false.

I get a wave of nausea seeing people out in public wearing scrubs.

After working at a hospital all day, the first thing I do is go home is throw my uniform in the wash and disinfect myself in the shower. However, when working in a nonpatient care role where I still wore scrubs, I would run errands after work.

As far as the cart at Walmart...I've seen the clientele with the kid in the cart with the creepy crud coming out of the poor child's nose....I'll get my produce elsewhere.

[cherryelle07]

I work in a retail clinic in a grocery store, so I a lot of times don't have a choice. We don't have a locker room to change in and the bathrooms are always disgusting, because the public doesn't know how to use the bathroom without making a mess. They're cleaned hourly, but there is always someone who comes in right after and trashes it. I will say thank god for online grocery ordering, because you don't have to go in anymore! I order my grocery and swing by to pick them up and they will load them into the car for me. Don't even have to get out. No squawling babies, no slow pokes, no having to wait in line at the register.... It's great. It really is. With Pea Pod it gets delivered directly to your house. But if I just need to grab some toilet paper, I'll go grab it.