Durable, Easy, and Cute Hairstyles for Nurses (+Video Tutorials)
What kind of nurse hairstyle do you use? Simply pony? Messy bun? Three-second twist
and clip?
Although requirements about keeping hair off the collar vary by employer, wearing your hair up as a nurse is generally a good idea for the following reasons:
Safety issue
Wearing your hair down as a nurse can be a safety issue. In mental health facilities especially, nurses are cautioned to wear their hair up so the patients don’t pull on it or grab it.
In dealing with other unstable, angry, violent, or confused patients, having your hair down can make it easy for it them to harm you.
Because Ew
In other situations, wearing your hair up can help keep it out of body fluids. You are required to wear gloves so that unsanitary substances don’t touch your skin, and keeping your hair up can keep it out of wounds, or, heaven forbid, out of briefs. Although a ponytail is great for short hair, with longer hair, sometimes a pony isn’t enough, and you need a bun. Many long-haired nurses have been cured of ponytails by having their hair fall in a wound or in something they were cleaning.
Too warm
Nurses are always busy, and sometimes having your hair down can make you too hot. Having your hair around your neck, ears, and face can make your body temperature rise.
In the way
Long hair, and hair in general, can get in your way and get caught in things as you are working. Your hair can get caught or tangled as you’re working with equipment, or trying to help move patients. It also can fall forward as you lean over to help a patient or fellow nurse, obstructing your vision.
What nurses want in a hairstyle
Being a nurse means a lot of things to different people. To some it means being a hero. To others it means being a comforter. But for all nurses in the field, being a nurse means being short on time. On that note, we sure don’t know of many nurses who want to wake up hours before their 4 am clinical to spend an additional hour on their hair. Nurses need something quick. Speed is a must.
Nurses also don’t want to be constantly adjusting their hair throughout the day, so they need something durable. They need something that will last through a 12-hour shift of moving around. Headbands, bobby pins, and clips can help with this problem. Especially if you have bangs, make sure to use a headband or pin them out of your way.
A lot of nurses think, “I’ll just tuck my hair behind my ears.” But that can get difficult when you have blood all over your gloves. You don’t want to be in that situation and be leaning over with bangs in your face.
The third requirement is looking attractive. Of course. Nurses still want to feel good about their appearance while they’re at work, and just because they’re working hard doesn’t mean they can’t work a great hairstyle too.
Check out three fun styles for nurses to try in the video below.
We hope our learners and other nurses enjoy these hairstyles, presented by our friends at Blown Away Family Hair Salon in Sunset, Utah. Below the video, we’ve rated each hairstyle based on speed, easiness, durability, and looks.
The Hairstyle Ratings:
The Ponyhawk:
Speed: 8
Easiness: 9
Durability: 10
Looks: 7
Founding Fathers:
Speed: 7
Easiness: 6
Durability: 6
Looks: 10
French Pony:
Speed: 6
Easiness: Depends on skill level
Durability: 10
Looks: 9