Monday, October 25, 2010

Nurse Uniform Colors: Preference vs Anxiety

From a recent 2010 Sigma Theta Tau International conference comes a presentation abstract: "Is There an Association Between Nurses' Uniform Color and Feelings/Emotions in School-Age Children Receiving Hospital or Ambulatory Healthcare?" by N.M. Albert and co-authors.

The conclusions that while blue, pink or patterned yellow might have positive emotional associations, when it comes to negative emotional associations "uniform color does not matter".

Which is to say white is probably OK.

And from a previous publication with N.M. Albert as the primary researcher, white might also be perceived as being more professional. All of which perhaps contribute to the question: "Should White Uniforms Be Standard for Hospital-Based RNs?"

2 comments:

  1. I can tell you from experience, white is not popular, especially for pediatrics, mostly because it shows stains. Most nurses I know chose the color of their scrubs using the same fashion sense that they choose their street clothes with. Other things of practical pockets, number of pockets.

    White Doctor coats now, do they cause anxiety?

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  2. Well let me see if I can track down a citation on any studies relating to Doctor coat colors...

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