What's the deal with scrubs?

Darlene K. · Feb 2, 2003

We have to wear purple! We can wear white pants/purple tops. We are pedi urgent care.

prmenrs, RN · Feb 2, 2003

I've posted this before, but here's my philosophy on this subject: if they pay for the scrubs, they can pick what I wear, as long as they have my size, which can be a challenge unless Omar the Tentmaker is making the scrubs.

If they expect ME to buy the scrubs, I get to pick!! :) I pick nice stuff--print tops, and solid pants that go with the tops. When I retired, I had some ~30 scrub tops in my closet, and enough coordinating pants to make a fashion statement; I had Christmas, Haloween, Easter and patriotic holidays all covered.

I have given away 2/3rds of the tops, but can't part w/all of them, which is a good thing since I've applied for a 'casual' slot in a Level II nursery. PRAY that I get it, please!! Retirement is great, but I need a little more $$ to party!!

Agnus · Feb 3, 2003

Our hospital has no color code. Last August I started to wear all white. Not scrubs. My tops have style and tailoring. That is they have princess seams, darts, pleats, collars etc.

As soon as I started to wear these everyone, patients, visitors, MDs, nurses other porfessionals etc started to reguard me differently. I now get respect that I did not get previously and often get more respect than my superiors. This come from every where.

As far as keeping it clean, I have less of a problem with that then when I wore colors. If there is a mark or "stain" that needs treating I can see it and it gets treated before laundering. Before I often missed them and they became set from the dryer before I even saw them.

My uniforms and shoes are pristine every day, with a sharp press. Between the laundry stain treatment and bleach they have stayed new looking, much longer than anything else.

People are affraid of white but it is really so much EASIER to keep clean. I don't have colors to seperate. I clean the scuffs off my Burgenstocks daily and treat those spots with a white shoe cream. I've had my shoes since july and everyone still think they are new. It takes me less than 1 minute a day for shoe care.

Because I do it every day. It is now Feburary.

I buy $9 Bobby Brooks twill pants from Walmart. They are sturdier and less see through than most scrub pants. So I can afford to pick and choose my tops but even then I have not paid more than $25 for a top and believe me that they are better made and studier than scrub tops that I have spent that much or more for.

I know most of you will remain unconvinced but it has made a real very noticable difference for me.

In answer to the original question yes you can buy white scrubs.

NicuGal, MSN, RN · Feb 5, 2003

We wear white pants and whatever top or jacket we want.

We did wear all teal at one point, but the ND did her thesis on how people view a nurse and all the old people liked white LOL

katrn03 · Feb 19, 2003

We wear whatever color we want. I have a wide variety of scrubs, pretty much every color of the rainbow. I really like my light pink scrubs, some people love them, others make fun of them. i like variety and being bright. I feel it makes the patients feel a little betterm and isn't that what we're there for?

ContriCXC · Feb 19, 2003

I would like to wear dark blue scrubs if i had the chance:eek:

CCL"Babe", BSN, RN · Feb 19, 2003

I wear what the hospital supplies. So often I'm in floods, wrinkled to the max, skin tight or fit two of me in one pair of pants. Some times I'm just plain lucky to find anything that fits in any way shape or form. :imbar

Rumor has it the hospital is trying to encourage us to buy our own. :rolleyes:

itsme · Feb 19, 2003

Up until a few years ago the nurses had to wear white uniforms, no scrubs, but the old fashioned polyester uniforms. Ick! Well it got so they quit making them and we all were looking pretty scraggy, so that has changed and now we can wear scrubs. I like to make my own tops, I have all the holidays covered with all the holiday print, and darker "fall" type colors for fall and winter, and the lighter and brighter for spring and summer!!

nurseygrrl, LPN · Mar 12, 2003

We have to wear all white. It gets really boring after a while. NO prints NO colors NO exceptions! Even our jackets have to be white. I wish they's let us get a little bit more creative.

frannybee · Mar 12, 2003

I wanna wear scrubs! Still wearing a standard nursing uniform, although I have just started wearing a dress instead of tunic and trousers. I'm a big big girl and I kept wearing through the inner-thigh seams. :imbar

DetroitNurse · Mar 16, 2003

At the time I hired in, any color scrubs were OK. Now they want nurses all to wear ceil blue--which makes me look near death. I guess that is the image a 1,000-bed urban medical center wants to project.

Many of the nurses are planning to disregard the new code, and I feel that since the hospital isn't providing them, that I'll switch when the ones I have now wear out.

Any thoughts?

Jim

nowplayingEDRN · Apr 4, 2003

When I worked for a civilian hospital, the floors were color coded: Med-Surg wore white, Peds was white bottoms and colored/print tops, OBU wore purple, ICU/CCU wore burgendy and Tele/StepDown wore all white or white bottoms and forrest green, teal or mauve tops. It was a challenge falling into that latter color choice as I like to be a bit different and was always on the look out for a top that combined the 3 colors....lol

Now that I work for Uncle Sam as a civilian RN, we still have a color code but it is ever so much easier. When I first went there, I wore white (even in PACU) but as they started to revamp the hospital and move units around (PACU and SICU were right next to each other, connected by a short corridor) the color code is more pronounced and people know where you work by the color you wear...Med-Surg still wears white but now PACU/OR and OBU wear the hospital scrubs, the ER wears Hunter Green and the SICU wears navy blue scrubs while all the clinics where white with print/colored tops. We do however in SICU wear print scrub coats or we cave in and use the hospital scrub coats.....but I have found that since going to navy blue, it is easier to keep my clothes looking professional. And frannybee...I empathize with you as that is the firt thing that wears out on my scrubs and I haven't found a brand yet that holds up much beyond 4-5 months. It is tough to be volptuous!

Christie