Children and Nursing Scrub Prints

You might not be able to wear prints or maybe you don’t like cartoon prints and other scrub designs made for nurses who work with children. You can still put the children at ease. Since children can be scared by hospitals, there can be a barrier built between them and the nurses who care for them, so it is important that a nurse does everything they can to bridge that gap. Studies have shown that nurses will be able to do less scaring of children and more caring by simply brightening up their wardrobe. The fun prints are ideal, but bright solids will do the job of putting children at ease, also.

One such study was published in the April 2009 Journal of Clinical Nursing. Festini and his team at the Meyer Children’s Hospital in Florence conducted this study. In the study there were 112 children from 6-years-old to 16-years-old that were surveyed. In the end this study showed that multicolored, unconventional attire improves how children perceive nurses. This in turn makes the children more comfortable. In fact, 96% of these children said that nurses in these scrubs were friendly, helpful, and even pleasant. These children expected that their nurses would be cheerful and funny. They also believed that these nurses would actually have time to play with them. Unfortunately though, the children’s perceptions of the hospital environment itself didn’t improve.

Over the past few decades many people in the medical profession have actually watched as scrubs have dramatically evolved. The styles are more fashionable with many designers expanding their line to include nursing scrubs. Cherokee is one of the manufacturers that have included nursing scrubs. They have a full line of nursing scrubs that includes the Cherokee micro silk line that is known for its comfort.

Many nurses still avoid wearing child-friendly prints though because they fear that such prints will detract from their professional image. In fact, in a recent, anonymous survey of nurses that was conducted by Health Resources Unlimited, LLC respondents believed that the way in which they presented themselves to patients and their families had the most effect upon how they were perceived professionally. The prints didn’t have as much affect on professional image of nurses working with children, as was original thought. With this in mind, it should come as no surprise that how nurses’ dress actually came in fifth place. Many of these respondents even went so far as to say that if nurses really wanted to have a more professional image, then they should stop wearing any scrubs that had cartoon images on them. This is interesting to note when you consider that Festini’s study found that these same scrubs didn’t negatively impact how nurses were perceived and, in fact, they actually seemed to improve upon this perception.

Ultimately, there are a lot of people who do believe that whenever nurses wear child-friendly scrubs they are showing respect for their patients. This is because they are sending a message that they actually understand these children and their needs. In fact, these scrubs can actually be used as a discussion starter with children, which will help to engage the child and create a distraction from uncomfortable procedures and tests.

Nurses, who are buying nursing scrub prints or solids, should remember it is not about them (their image) it is about the child that they are caring for. When a child is responsive and accepting of care, the parents see the nurse as more professional and it puts them at ease when a nurse is caring for their child. Confidence in the nurse makes for a better patient experience.

To shop for nursing scrubs with and without child friendly prints and bright colors, go to All Uniform Wear for a full selection of Cherokee and Sketchers nursing scrubs styles, colors, and prints.

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