The professionally groomed image includes keeping skin clean, wearing an effective, unscented deodorant, and keeping the nails clean and trimmed. Long nails make patients uneasy, and clinical facilities prohibit artificial nails. For men, the face should be clean shaven or the beard neatly trimmed. For women, wearing minimal, low- key makeup that projects a business look and not working with chipped nailpolish is important. Hair for both sexes should be secured so that it does not swing over the patient while performing care.
Hair contains bacteria that can fall onto the patient.
Other types of rings and bracelets may injure the patient s skin while the nurse is giving direct care, and there also is the change of losing a stone or breaking a bracelet if it catches on something. A good guideline is not to wear any jewelry that dangles or can make noise. Perfumed lotions or colognes should not be used because they tend to cause nausea in people who are ill. Patients have a clean and crisp image of nurses, and they judge the nurse s competence by how the nurse looks and behaves. Student nurses are expected to dress professionally whenever they enter the clinical facility.