What do you wear to commute, esp if you walk or take public transit?

[Bloop41, BSN, RN]

Bit of a niche question-- for those of you that work in a hospital environment, do you wear different shoes/clothes to commute?

I'm a BSN student, starting my med-surg clinicals this week and am wondering if I should be changing to lower infection risk. I'm planning on walking to the hospital from my apartment (15 min) and barring bad weather, was planning on wearing the exact scrubs and black clogs required by our uniform.

I also recently began a part time job at a Rehab/SNF: should I be wearing different shoes for clinical and work to avoid cross contamination? Or just wipe them down at the end of each shift?

I fully recognize I could be overthinking this ?

[StillSearchingRN]

Plenty of visitors and, I'm sure, fellow staff members will wear their same shoes all over the facility from the community and then from the facility right back into their community. That being said, I usually make sure (and ask that any visitors to my home do the same) to take off my shoes that I'm not tracking any funk in from anywhere.

[adventure_rn, MSN, NP]

1 hour ago, Bloop41 said:

I fully recognize I could be overthinking this ?

Lol, yep, you're overthinking it. Honestly, I don't think you need to wipe your shoes down between shifts either unless you feel so inclined; just don't wear them in and around your house.

I would have an extra pair of scrubs in your locker in case you get vomited/pooped/peed on during the shift. As someone who has had my bra soaked through with emesis (fortunately from a baby), I can also attest that an extra sports bra is a good idea, too.

[JKL33]

You might get a little more life out of your clogs (or keep them looking nice longer) if you wear another shoe/boot for the commute, especially if you might be dealing with rain/snow, etc.

Side note: I love my clogs, but they are possessed. They only like to walk properly if they are inside the hospital. Outside they will throw you down on the ground so people can snicker. ??

[adventure_rn, MSN, NP]

4 minutes ago, JKL33 said:

Side note: I love my clogs, but they are possessed. They only like to walk properly if they are inside the hospital. Outside they will throw you down on the ground so people can snicker. ??

Yikes, that's just one of the many reasons I no longer do clogs. I feel like they choose the most inopportune time to just give up at being clogs (for instance, when you're running to a code and twist your ankle).

While running to a delivery, I once witnessed a three-nurse pile-up because of a clog slip. One person got stitches, one ended up with a broken patella, and one got a concussion. It was like a Three Stooges episode. There was hardly anybody left to attend the actual delivery, let alone anybody to tend to the wounded.

[Nunya, BSN]

12 hours ago, adventure_rn said:

Lol, yep, you're overthinking it. Honestly, I don't think you need to wipe your shoes down between shifts either unless you feel so inclined; just don't wear them in and around your house.

I would have an extra pair of scrubs in your locker in case you get vomited/pooped/peed on during the shift. As someone who has had my bra soaked through with emesis (fortunately from a baby), I can also attest that an extra sports bra is a good idea, too.

As someone who has had my bra and underwear soaked through with amniotic fluid (precip delivery, no time to gown) I recommend both bra AND underwear. Nothing like going totally commando for half the shift...?

[adventure_rn, MSN, NP]

10 minutes ago, Elaine M said:

As someone who has had my bra and underwear soaked through with amniotic fluid (precip delivery, no time to gown) I recommend both bra AND underwear. Nothing like going totally commando for half the shift...?

Oh boy, that would be rough. It’s too bad they didn’t have any of those mesh postpartum panties to spare. Our L&D unit stocks abdominal binders for the post-C-section moms, and they were kind enough to lend me one to use as a bandeau bra all shift.