The Evolution of the Nursing Uniform From as far back as the 1800s, nurses’ uniforms have been changing and become more modern with the passing of the years and the general trend in fashion and clothing. Earlier than 1800, a ‘nurse’ would always be a member of the family of the person who was sick, and they would simply do the best they possibly could to keep the patient comfortable. In those days they knew nothing of sanitary conditions and keeping their hands clean to prevent the spread of infection. The clothing they wore for carrying out their nursing duties was just their normal clothing – nothing sterilized or white and clean-looking. Before 1800, in more organized communities such as monasteries - where there were nuns and monks - the nuns nursing uniforms were simply the daily habits they wore as sisters. So nurses in 1256 wore their traditional sisters’ habits, and that is why when the nursing profession was officially established in the next 400 years, the first uniforms had the appearance of nun’s habits. This is also where the traditional form of address of a nurse came from – they adopted the rank of “sister” from the nuns’ familiar name. During the Crimean War in 1854, Florence Nightingale wore the traditional long dress with long sleeves, apron, and a nun’s head dress. Today’s nurse’s uniforms are a far cry from those heavy, uncomfortable and unpractical dresses. Uniforms have evolved into the colorful top, and pant scrub sets for men and woman and they have become far more functional. They had never heard of sterilising the material or the tools they used, and even their thick, ungainly dresses were of a rough material that gathered germs instead of repelling them. Related: Why Nursing Events and Seminars are Essential to your Success
Uniforms start becoming cleaner in more Ways than One By 1893, a nurse’s uniform of sorts had emerged – not in plain fabric but in a checked fabric that set them apart from the sisters who were not nurses. The style was a long dress with long sleeves – again - and a collar finished off with an apron. Florence Nightingale was still around, but the only familiar part of the uniform was the apron. This tells us that no one had yet designed a special nurse’s uniform, and there was still no formal training procedure for nurses in place. At the same time, a nurse’s cap was introduced instead of the nun’s headdress. Clearly the dresses never had pockets as things like scissors, bandages and other medical ‘utensils’ were tied on to the uniform. Around this time, nurses started sporting criss-cross aprons, together with shorter sleeves. In time, the criss-cross style moved to the back of the aprons making the front of the uniform look much neater. In 1898, the first head nurse of the Canadian Contingent to the Boer War in South Africa proudly wore her uniform from Bellevue Hospital, New York. At the time, puff sleeves must have been the latest fashion, and this was carried through to the nurse’s uniforms in the early 1900s. This American style then influenced the English nurse’s uniforms and the puff sleeves also became an item in the UK. The nurses also wore belts around their waists both to tie things onto and to make their uniforms look a bit more glamorous and flattering. At the same time, one of Florence Nightingale’s nurses designed a new uniform – however, all that really changed was the addition of a bib or apron which was attached to the pinafore and not a separate tied on the item.
Generally, in the 1900s, nurse’s uniforms looked very similar to servant’s uniforms, because of the long apron they wore over their dresses. And together with the way some of the caps were designed, they were almost mistaken for servants. However, other designs were soon introduced to right this look and to distinguish between a servant and a nurse. In addition, nurses wore armbands to identify their profession and to signify their rank. New nurses wore pastel colors while experienced and more senior nurses wore black. American nurses, preferred to wear the nurse's cap with their long hair pinned up underneath it, while the British wore the veil headdress to keep the hair off their faces. In 1910 the Washington University Training School for Nurses implemented the first formal nurses uniform. It became very easy to identify a new nurse as opposed to an experienced one – the new nurse wore short-sleeved uniforms, while the more senior nurses wore long dresses, with long colored strips. Related: All the Things You can do with a Nursing Degree When WW1 broke out in 1914, nurses were easily recognized as they had a Red Cross badge on their uniforms, on their brassard, their caps or the chest of their apron. The uniform designs started becoming a bit more sophisticated, and during the war, they gained a more military style uniform with a high neck and emblazoned buttons. The nurse’s cap was still in use on their heads with pins. The Red Cross Nurses in WW1 were very smart and stood out in their famous red-lined dark blue capes. These nurses looked after the wounded soldiers on the battlefields, so they needed to be easily identifiable – they also had a red cross on their capes. The nurses wore serviceable shoes that would last in field tent hospitals, and often they had to fetch
wounded soldiers from the battlefields themselves. Again, they wore a Red Cross brassard, cap insignia, and a pin.
The aprons were worn a lot during the earlier civil war, but by WW1 their popularity declined. Protection from stains became more necessary in the theatre, and hospital wards, so more practical utility aprons were used in the field. Also, the laundry in France was left much to be desired, so the practical aprons were much more popular. After Florence Nightingale had died, the bib, apron, and long sleeve cuffs were still being worn. But the nurse’s caps were now starting to become a little glamorous. The purpose of clipping the hair back with the cap was not really working anymore, so the caps simply became a fashion item that the nurses wore to add a bit of glamour to their uniforms.
The next major war was WW11, and the general feeling around the world was to try and preserve what they had and making the most of the available resources. Nurse’s uniforms began to have a shorter cut with the hemline reaching to just below the knee – the same as all the fashions of the day. In addition, the sleeves were much shorter. The another major change was that people in the field hospitals were starting to realize that the practicalities of nurses wearing pants far outweighed any arguments against it. This modern uniform consisted of a suit, pants, and a beret. The Switch to All White Uniforms Canada became the first country in the world whose nurses started wearing all white clothing from head to toe. They had a short sleeved uniform, the shorter hemline and looked clean and professional. The puff sleeves had disappeared. By 1950, the cuffs of the sleeves were folded
back 2, “and they were a white contrast for some of the colored nursing uniforms – which were introduced for rank recognition. No accessories were allowed except a watch for taking the pulse of a patient. The uniform started becoming stylish with a tight waist, button up the front and a comfortable neckline – they either had long or ¾ sleeves. The skirts were flared.
Current Nursing Fashions In the 1960s, skirts were lifted again as shorter styles started to come into fashion. However, the uniforms were kept at a modest length, with the skirts being tightly fitted. Different materials were also used such as wash and wear cotton, Dacron, and others. The belt started to disappear, and nameplates were introduced as the nursing profession became more humanized.
Although a lot of countries use colored uniforms, the white still remains consistent with a lot of military, naval and army employees. All uniforms are made to be easily laundered so they can be washed in bulk and ready to wear the next day. This became possible with the modern materials now used in the making of the uniforms. A lot of nurses wear the shirt or tunic top with pants – these allow for more mobility and more comfort, however, with all the changes over the years, the uniforms have always retained their professional image. The pant suits are now available in all sorts of colors and patterns. Related: International Nurses Association - What's Your Superpower? Tshirt Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter