Although you’ll find some stereotypical combination of white mini skirt, shirt and nursing cap while searching for ‘Halloween nurse costume’, but that doesn’t define today’s nurse uniform in the slightest.
Nursing uniform comes with several options to choose from, and they’re much more different and diverse than the vintage picture of the fifty’s that pops up in your brain whenever you’re thinking of one.
Usually, uniforms are used to project a person’s profession. This purpose of projection can’t describe nurse uniform properly.
Nurses work in a vulnerable surrounding, so they got to dress themselves up in an accurate attire that’ll be favorable for their workplace environment, along with reflecting their professional identity.
The work of a nurse is diverse, and keeping that in consideration, so is their dress code. You don’t need something extra when you’re checking on patients in a general ward or passing through the lobby. In the meantime, you want to keep yourself heavily protected in the ER, don’t you?
Different environments require their own dress code. So, you can’t go with just one option while choosing a nurse uniform.
How to Choose A Nursing Uniform
Several factors work behind the type of uniform one should wear at work. And you got to choose keeping those factors in mind.
What Does Your Employer want?
Usually, the hospital authority decides what uniform their nurses should wear. They take this decision basing on the hospital environment and the patient’s psychological view. Yes, their psychological aspect matters since the nurses have to be well-received by them.
Moreover, many hospitals come up with their individual uniform type so that you can easily recognize their workplace. The uniform carrying the hospital’s identity, not that much of an irrational concept.
What’s Your Position?
Sometimes the uniform varies by the position. Hospital is such a crucial place where you don’t want to end up asking for some serious advice from a rookie intern who’s still learning, instead of the experienced senior nurse.
It’s important to recognize the right person at the right moment. And sometimes, if they’re all wearing the same thing, it’s hard to distinguish their nursing responsibility. This situation highly demands distinctive uniform choices.
Yes, you should be able to know who you’re talking to by seeing their uniform.
Choosing Own Outfit
However, in plenty of workplaces, a nurse is allowed to showcase their choice. If the authority or your superior one doesn’t have any problem with your outfit choice, how cool is that?
Still, we’d advise you to discuss the matter beforehand with the authority, ‘cause it’ll help you choose better. Well, you can ask, why on the earth should you ask them when you have full liberty of choosing your own outfit?
The question is rational, so is the answer to this question. Now, you can go with anything you want if there’s no one to stop you there. But, should you? Maintaining workplace ethics is essential for employees, hence your outfit choice shouldn’t be violating that.
Your employers, the authority understand that. That’s why it’s better to get your outfit approved by them first.
Keep the Environment in Mind
Yes, having the liberty of choosing your own uniform is all cool and hip until you start taking the wrong advantage of it. And as you’re a nurse, it’s your responsibility to be extra careful regarding this matter.
As a citizen of a free country, you’re not liable to listen to what others have to say, but your outfit mustn’t violate the respective nurse dress code. Also, as we’ve already discussed earlier, your patient should not feel threatened by you, neither your colleagues.
Respect the Dress Code
All the things mentioned above are the parts of nursing dress code. As a responsible employee, it’s your duty to respect the dress code of your workplace. So, don’t choose anything that goes against the code.
Give Hygiene Priority
Yes, the first and foremost condition, whatever you wear, has to be hygienic no matter what. It’s neither a hardware store nor an office. It’s a place where disease-ridden patients come to get rid of the disease.
In order to take care of them, nurses have to maintain hygienic attire too. Their uniforms shouldn’t be a comfy environment for germ habitation, neither should be a threat to their patient’s well-being.
So, always be aware of the hygiene while going with a choice. Make sure your outfit is properly sterilized.
Should Be Able to Detect Contaminants
It’s a hospital we’re talking about, so obviously, your workplace environment is going to be surrounded by threatening contaminants.
To save yourself, you should be able to detect their presence. That’s why select a uniform that suits the said purpose.
Comfort Shouldn’t Be Ignored
Now nursing is obviously not a desk-job where you can get by simpler tasks. Your job includes rushing from one place to another, handling challenging tasks every hour. So, your workplace convenience has to be your topmost priority.
Since you’ll be spending a large period of your day at work, you mustn’t choose something that will get on your way after a while. Choose something comfortable, something that’ll help you put your complete focus on the job.
Pockets for Your Daily Necessities
Yes! Your uniform HAS TO include pockets. No compromise on that one!
As a nurse, you require to use nursing equipment or other necessary staffs from time to time. But for that, you can’t go on carrying them everywhere all the time, can you?
Moreover, you have to rush to a place every time someone needs you or your hands to be free for the same purpose. Pockets in your scrub or apron save the hustle of holding accessories or the rush of grabbing stuff from different places.
Besides, nowadays we need to take our smartphone with us everywhere. So, the pockets are, without any doubt, an obvious necessity. Same for the pager.
How to Purchase Nurse Uniform
When the authority takes the task in their hand, you really don’t need to worry about it anymore.
However, for individual purchase, we’ll say any supermarket is a great choice for a quality uniform. While shopping from there, you’ll get the full privilege of inspecting the uniform beforehand to match your conditions.
Or, as most people do nowadays, you can make the purchase from online retail.
The biggest advantage of online shopping is, you’ll get a vast collection of uniforms to choose from. But be careful, “nurse uniform” is a popular keyword for party/Halloween costume; they ARE NOT what you’re looking for.
Things to Wear as A Nurse
Let’s take a look at all the things a nurse is supposed to wear, shall we?
Scrubs
Scrubs are the most significant part of the whole nursing outfit. In fact, this IS THE NURSING OUTFIT.
For the scrub part, most nurses go with pants and tunic-like shirts. Gowns work as well. It doesn’t matter what type of scrub you’re wearing as long as it’s comfortable and sterilized.
Yes, sterilized scrub is a must, because when you’re covering your body as a nurse, you’re in fact going in a battle with contaminants and viruses. Your scrub needs to be prepared too, just like you. You mustn’t get affected by the enemy force.
Now, about color and design, most hospitals prefer full blue, white or other light-colored scrubs for their employee, because the color makes it easier to detect when the clothe is dirty. However, depending on the circumstance and the authority’s nature, nurses in some places are capable of wearing other colors too.
Scrubs often include designs and patterns that make them look more vibrant. However, you should choose wisely ‘cause you got to be received properly by other people.
Don’t wear something that violates your workplace dress code.
Mask
You don’t want to catch the disease the patient you’re seeing carries or transfer some of your fluids in their body, do you? Nobody wants that to happen, and that’s where the face mask comes handy.
People’s mouths are a vulnerable source of catching or spreading diseases. Saliva and air are two effective mediums for carrying germs, filth and contaminants; so it’s pretty evident how vulnerable your mouth can get in time.
That’s why nurses have to wear a face mask in the ER, operating section or while checking on a risky patient; to save both themselves and their patients.
Gloves
The necessity of gloves is similar to that of the face mask. Just like your mouth, your hands are vulnerable too.
In your workplace, you are always touching visible or invisible germ-ridden stuff. You’re attending diseased patients who can infect you or get infected by your one touch. So, as a nurse, you can’t deny the importance of hand gloves.
Clogs
Clogs? More like foot gloves! Just kidding!
But seriously though, the purpose is exactly the same.
Clogs are an essential part of the whole uniform, so choose carefully while purchasing. Nurses are always in rush, clogs make it easier for them to walk or run on a slippery surface.
People usually wear white clogs in most hospitals. And there’s a good reason behind that.
Now, it’s not a mystery that you’re exposed to an environment filled with threatening fluids, debris and contaminants while working as a hospital employee. It’s easy to detect if something is on a white shoe.
However, options for clogs are definitely not limited to one certain type. You can wear different colors too, depending on the hospital/place you’re working in. If your employer is okay with your choice, color is not a big deal.
However, your comfort is definitely a big deal here. Nurses have to stand on their feet most of the time, and it becomes quite challenging when the shoes they’re in aren’t comfortable. Give your convenience the topmost priority while searching for clogs.
Bag
As already discussed earlier, we came to the agreement that pockets in a scrub is a call of necessity. However, you can ease the issue with the help of a nursing bag.
Nursing bags are particularly manufactured for nurses so that they can always keep their nursing equipment and pager/phone closer. Also, it works as a great substitute for carrying stuff if your uniform doesn’t include any pocket.
Final Words
As a responsible employee, it’s your duty to follow the dress code of your workplace. The dress code prepares the employee for the job, and this fact is more applicable when that employee happens to be a nurse.
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