What do you think?

adrienurse, LPN · Jul 12, 2002

I think it's gross and generally a bad idea for infection control. Also depends on how sick your patients are, I guess. If I worked in infectious diseases, hell no I wouldn't do it. There are times, though when I haven't even toileted anyone on my shift, and I know that my uniform is basically as clean as the rest of me.

caroladybelle, BSN, RN · Jul 12, 2002

When I used to work as a clerk/occasional bartender at a liquor store/bar, you should have seen some of the places people would dig cash out from to pay for their booze - they should clerks biohazard bags for the register and gloves to handle the money.

They weren't kidding when they call it filthy lucre.

Lausana · Jul 12, 2002

That is just nasty...it's not like stopping at the gas station or running in to Arby's-but at the Olive Garden!!?? If I was her dinner guest I'd probably offer 1 of my 5 zip up sweatshirts I throw in my car so I wouldn't have to stare at that while I was eating :chuckle

Teshiee · Jul 12, 2002

EEEK! That is nasty to be in a restaurant with blood tinged scrubs. Personally with time we lack to take a leak it is easier to go to the store in your scrubs and then go home. I guess you just have to use your discretion.

flowerchild · Jul 12, 2002

Hi! Been lurking around a couple of weeks without posting and thought I'd finally post.

Nurse Angie, You are making assumptions that anyone wearing a scrub is a nurse who has just left the bedside. I am able to wear anything I want to work and choose to wear the scrubs over street clothes. I often go out to eat, shop, pick up kids etc in my scrubs. Why would you assume that I am gross because I'm in my scrubs and having a meal in a public place? I have not been at the bedside nor exposed to infectious diseases. What if I wore my jeans to work that day and then went out to eat? I did the same nursing job, just wore something different, am I still gross?

azgirl · Jul 12, 2002

I have done home care where part of the duties might be to run to the store and pick up something my patient needed. I would be breaking the no scrubs in the store rule but not carrying anything nasty with me. The blood though would be quite another matter.

WalMart_ADN · Jul 12, 2002

hmm i think they were just talking about the blood stained scrubs as being gross, not scrubs in general being gross.

and of course your not gross...your an allnurses.com nurse!

fergus51 · Jul 12, 2002

I don't even put my scrubs in the closet where they can touch my regular clothes. There is a strict devider, same thing with shoes. Maybe it's a little odd, but I don't like my work stuff touching anything else.

flowerchild · Jul 12, 2002

Yes, I most certainaly agree that any uniform with body fluids on it is gross! I wouldn't even finish my shift w/o changing into fresh scrubs after they are soiled. In fact anytime I work at the bedside, I change immediatly upon a patients body fluids soiling my uniform. I can't even imagine walking around with blood on my cloths!

I wear my scrubs all the time to stores and such and never thought anyone thought anything of it until today. The original post asked about seeing scrubs on people in various public places and only mentioned the one incident of seeing a soiled scrub. I took the post more on a gereralization of anyone wearing scrubs outside of the workplace as being yucky and gross. I just wanted to point out that not all nurses wearing scrubs in public have icky germs plastered all over thier front side.

NurseAngie · Jul 12, 2002

Originally posted by OBNURSEHEATHER
On another note, I think it's just as unsafe to stop places before work in your uniform. You're picking things up that you take into work to your patients.

Heather

Heather,

I was thinking the exact same thing about wearing them on your way IN to work....you could bring who knows what in to your patients.

~Ang

Love-A-Nurse · Jul 13, 2002

originally posted by nurseangie
what's your take on wearing your uniform while you are attending to personal business outside of work...say to wal-mart, the local steakhouse, whatever? i think it's gross to trek around in your uniform to the store after you've been taking care of sick patients because of all the nasty things you might have been exposed to on the job. i see a lot of that here. maybe they think they look cute or something. we were out to dinner at the olive garden and right across from us sat a nurse in what looked to be a blood-stained scrub uniform! ugh:rolleyes: i know convenience is probably the biggest reason that i see so much of this. it's just icky!

happy nursing~angie

i wear mine to pick up a couple of items from the store or i have gone to pay a bill. i rather not stop anywhere. as i am driving home, i am thinking about a shower, sometimes eating and relaxing.

NurseAngie · Jul 13, 2002

Originally posted by hoolahan
I guess I'm as gross as thisnurse. I have gone out to bkft after working nights too. BUT, if my uniform had blood/body fluids on it, I would change immediately, even if I still had to finish my shift.

I don't get too yuked up in homecare. So, I don't feel as gross going out to the supermarket in my uniform. But I am also a handwashing fanatic, so I am very careful in that way.

But as far as it looking gross, how do you know that the guy in front of you at the grocery store wasn't unclogging a toilet before he shopped, or someone else didn't wash their hands after using the BR? Just as gross what you can't see!

Hmmm....a good point, but then again...he wasn't wearing a blood stained uniform while I sat slurping my spaghetti, so it's his own health at risk for not washing his hands. I just kept telling myself "it's probably iodine spilled on her top" and tried not to look at her. IT LOOKED GROSS. Maybe a clean lab coat worn over her scrubs wouldn't have bothered me so much.

I just started noticing women (never any men for some reason, but we do have many male nurses in our area) wearing their work clothes in the stores and restaurants here. I was wondering if it was the new "in" fashion here. I know convenience is probably the reason that I have seen so much of this, I was just curious what other health professionals had to say. :imbar

Happy Nursing~Angie