Nurse Campy Fancy Pants!

I have a personal bias against scrubs especially the "campy fancy pants". Everyone and their cousin who works in a medical facility wears scrubs. A patient cannot distinguish the nurse from the cleaning person. Scrubs used to be confined to the O.R. or the I.C.U. They were worn only in the hospital and were blue or green. Betty Boop indeed. Call me a fuddy duddy Doc Lori but I cannot wax poetic on the subject of scrubs!

Starting my RN program this fall, I've just received my scrubs in the mail. I keep looking at the box with a deep reverence. First tangible marker of my career to be. Or as one of my friends said, "at least you get to go to work in your pajamas"

Quote from cherryames1949I have a personal bias against scrubs especially the "campy fancy pants". Everyone and their cousin who works in a medical facility wears scrubs. A patient cannot distinguish the nurse from the cleaning person. Scrubs used to be confined to the O.R. or the I.C.U. They were worn only in the hospital and were blue or green. Betty Boop indeed. Call me a fuddy duddy Doc Lori but I cannot wax poetic on the subject of scrubs!

Thank goodness we don't have to wear those caps anymore!! As for earrings, all it took was one confused patient to rip one out of my ear, so I never wear jewelry of any kind, except a watch, to work. I also don't wear clogs; I like tennis shoes that tie, so I can run to a code. I agree with the poster who said patients can't tell housekeeping from nurses; I find that if you are a male nurse or a male respiratory therapist, the patient automatically assumes you are a doctor. I have known some male therapists that would wear white coats, and never correct the patient who called them doctor! I have also found that some patients think the female doctors are nurses. I don't wear looney-tune scrubs; I want to look professional.

What a fun polarizing subject. We certainly have a "love-hate" relationship with scrubs/shoes/stethascopes/pens (and hats!). I am all for being able to quickly identify the nurse vs housekeeping vs doctors and anyone else that wears scrubs. Heck, even at my vet the receptionist and other techs were scrubs. But, get a group of nurses together and try to decide what the "uniform" for their floor/unit/hospital will be and no 2 people can decide on 1 type of scrubs.

Kudos to you doc lori RN for taking such a drab subject and weaving a colorful short story into an overlooked subject. Getting ready for your shift is such a ritual as we have to stick to a repetative garment routine. Love how you describe what happens to the pre-shift bun. Out of the whole lot of multiple scrub sets I have, there's only one pair I have that are soft as suede and when I wear those it seems like the whole night just goes better!

newtress...I hear you about the suede scrubs making the whole night go better...you totally understood what my point was You get the award ahaha!! Take care and thank you!

There's something satisfying about the time it takes for something scratchy and stiff to become faded and soft. You know that took a whole lot of hours and many washes. If they made "pre-washed" or "distressed" scrubs-- not gonna buy 'em, nope. I love your style, Doc Lori!

ditto! thank you!

I worked in animal care for years, and still have scrubs from those days. For fun, at Nursing school, on lab days I would wear my "...... Animal Hospital" monogrammed scrubs with my name. I find fun in the smallest of things. My mom was an LPN in the 70's and became an RN in the 80's...she wore white polyester-type dresses with white pantyhose, the cap, and all leather white shoes (we would have to air them out every night...haha!). I would not be able to do pantyhose everyday, and the white pants are bad on "certain days". The white scrub top is a good idea. It is hard to tell who is who, esp. when those nametags flip around, I would be at a clinical trying to peek at a flipped nametag, so I knew the name of who I was working with. As far as caps go, I have a pixie cut, so bobbie pins to hold that rascal on would be a problem!

Doc lori RN, a little snipette on the history of the "suede scrubs" we all love Elvis Presley's tune about blue suede shoes. Gotta say that must of been awsome to don a pair of them in the day. These scrubs of mine usually were worn on Mondays, like black monday. Ironically a whole bunch of other employees seemed to wear black on Mondays also. But mine were dandy. I live in the south and I have a pair that has the Chrimson Tide Alabama logo on mine. Black and chrimson on the pocket with the big red chrimson A. But I have yet to understand why why these polyester cotton blend similar to my others have a powdery soft quality to them that others don't. I could wax a car with these. Kid glove material. So by far these are my fav-orite scrubs fo all time, and because they lay nice on the skin I think that is why they make a night go by so good. Plus I feel like I am making my daddy proud being from Alabama wearing scrubs in Louisiana!

Correctional nursing holds many challenges and looking the part is a MUST. White always commands respect even with the most difficult I/M. Spicing it up with some color at times is nice, and yes I to have those few outfits I wouldn't get rid of for anything. And my sweater. OH my sooo comfyyyy sweater