Hi everyone, and thank you for checking out this post! I am so excited about discussing today’s tip of the day because it relates to the importance of personal safety within the nursing workforce. Often, hospitals and institutions mandate the color and style of nursing uniforms or scrubs. Consequently, nurses solely remain in control over the style and choice of their footwear. As a nurse working in an inpatient setting, nurses would express their personal style through their collection of colorful kicks. Some of the nurses would wear lightweight, cloth sneakers like Nike’s Free Style athletic shoes. Time and time again, they expressed great love for this brand because the shoes were breathable and lightweight, which are key while working long shifts. As a new graduate nurse, I must confess that I initially wore athletic shoes. But, I did not choose this style because of the rave reviews but as an act of unconventionality. Basically, I chose this style because I wanted to break free from the conformity of my nursing school dress code. Going into the job, I knew that I had no authority of my scrub’s color and style, but I wanted to make my mark through my colorful selection of shoes. The cost wasn’t the driving force. I just wanted to express my personality and be fashionable. Sadly, personal safety was not at the top of my list until an occurrence with a patient who developed a new and unforeseen case of Clostridium difficile. That experience changed my mind.
At the beginning of your shift, you start-off fresh and clean. In a matter of moments, you get bodily fluids all over your scrubs.
To say the least, this case of explosive diarrhea influenced me to adjust my shoe game quickly. Similarly, the downsides of cloth shoes are that it’s absorptive and difficult to clean, which pose immense dangers for the patient, the nurse, and their families because of the potential for bacterial transmission. Now, one does not want their shoes to be the harbinger of disease like Typhoid Mary. So, I recommend the use of leather-based footwear like Dansko’s clogs. Believe me, I know that they are heavy, clunky, and not the most appealing. However, if you encounter a similar situation, you can literally wipe down and disinfect the shoes in a matter of minutes. Let me be clear, I am not the poster child that disavows the use of cloth based shoes, but, keep in mind that you are making yourself susceptible to potential pathogens if a bodily fluid or chemical spills on your feet. All in all, heed my words, “Choose your nursing footwear wisely. You will never know when your time comes, and you may meet an explosive case of Clostridium difficile.”
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