Mandatory Uniforms: Is It Good for the Nurse or the Coporation?Mandatory uniforms are quickly assimilating themselves in clinics, offices, and hospitals throughout the country. Though scrubs are the mode of wear in these industries - a wave is shifting that is causing nurses and staff to throw their hands up in frustration. However, with security measures and identification being an important factor in some facilities, nurses and other departments are finding that they are losing their options for creative expression. Is that a good thing? 
This issue causes much conflict amongst nurses, other staff, and the administration that doesn't necessarily wear a uniform. Are mandatory uniforms better for an organization in recognizing who the staff are according to their colors? Or should nurses still have the individuality to express themselves through their uniforms? The old versus the new...The nurses who liked the old nurse uniforms argue that nurses who wear scrubs are seen by the patients as cleaners and cannot be identified as nurses. In many parts of the world, nurses continue to wear a uniform consisting of a dress, apron and cap. White dresses and starched caps are still an icon, even after thirty years of nurses turning to less distinctive and more comfortable, functional clothing. The history of nursing uniforms have changed to meet the needs of women and their progression in the work place.
That is why it is such a dilemma as to whether nurses should be able to make their own choices about what they should wear or sacrifice the strides they have made in empowerment of choices to conform for the greater good. The argument for scrubs is an effective one. It gives nurses power to make a choice over their uniforms and allows them to express their personality and individuality. Scrubs are also made in superior fabric from poly/cotton to 100% organic cotton. The future of scrubs is also changing as nurses are offered customability in how their scrubs fit. From choosing different styles to different trims, nurses are able to be professional, creative, and artistic in their expression. Uniformity can still occur as long as there is a group decision in representing their unit or facility. In this day and age, nurses have a voice and a choice in how they want to look and feel. We would like your feedback on this matter. Do you support uniform choices or mandatory uniforms? Please fill out our form below to get a thread started and to share your voice or concerns with other nurses out in the community.
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