HSE tells staff to dress 'modestly' or face dismissal

Slurryface · 10-10-2012 07:13AM #1

The HSE has a deficit of €370,000,000 so far this year, figures published yesterday show that 10,000 service users were assaulted, abused, or threatened last year (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1010/1224325094663.html), but apparently their biggest concern is female staff wearing skin tight clothing, low cut tops and tattoos!

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hse-tells-staff-to-dress-modestly-or-face-dismissal-3255614.html

10-10-2012 07:15AM

if nurses dressed like that (low cut tops etc.) I'd be in hospital a lot more often.

brandon_flowers · 10-10-2012 07:30AM

The senior people that run the HSE are a shower of cvnts and not only for this above. James Reilly is the biggest one. That is all.

galwayrush · 10-10-2012 07:33AM

brandon_flowers wrote: »

The senior people that run the HSE are a shower of cvnts and not only for this above. James Reilly is the biggest one. That is all.

Even bigger than Mary Harney?

Pherekydes · 10-10-2012 07:35AM

Slurryface wrote: »

The HSE has a deficit of €370,000,000 so far this year, figures published yesterday show that 10,000 service users were assaulted, abused, or threatened last year (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1010/1224325094663.html), but apparently their biggest concern is female staff wearing skin tight clothing, low cut tops and tattoos!

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hse-tells-staff-to-dress-modestly-or-face-dismissal-3255614.html

How do you infer that that's their biggest concern?

Most HSE staff would be professionally turned out, which seems sensible to me.

Monty Burnz · 10-10-2012 07:35AM

Seems perfectly reasonable:

He added: "The Mid Western Regional Hospitals Group believes employees should be professional in appearance and in attitude to their work at all times and should not place themselves or patients at risk in relation to health, safety, infection control or in any situation causing potential embarrassment."

He also said dress codes were commonplace in most large institutions and firms. The idea of formalising a code "is that all concerned clearly know what is acceptable and what is not".

Just because the administrators aren't meeting budget targets does not mean that staff should be coming to work in belly tops and mini-skirts. You wouldn't get away with it in a real company, would you?

phasers · 10-10-2012 07:36AM

In fairness I don't want some slapper taking a blood sample from me.

There is a ban on short mini-skirts and low-cut T-shirts as well as backless tops or dress garments which reveal excessive cleavage or midriff.

Halter-neck tops, skin-tight clothing, micro-skirts and low-cut dresses are also deemed inappropriate.

Staff must remove artificial nails, nail jewellery, nail polish and hide any tattoos they have.

Seems reasonable to me.

Whatever happened to hospital staff wearing scrubs or some kind of uniform?

10-10-2012 07:37AM

phasers wrote: »

Whatever happened to hospital staff wearing scrubs or some kind of uniform?

everyone started watching porn.

Zebra3 · 10-10-2012 07:40AM

galwayrush wrote: »

Even bigger than Mary Harney?

Retired.

Bless her. :rolleyes:

Chuck Stone · 10-10-2012 07:40AM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlWvk5CUD5w

philologos · 10-10-2012 07:43AM

Slurryface wrote: »

The HSE has a deficit of €370,000,000 so far this year, figures published yesterday show that 10,000 service users were assaulted, abused, or threatened last year (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1010/1224325094663.html), but apparently their biggest concern is female staff wearing skin tight clothing, low cut tops and tattoos!

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hse-tells-staff-to-dress-modestly-or-face-dismissal-3255614.html

It's an entirely fair request. An employer has every right to ask employees to wear clothes which are suitable for work.

Tombi! · 10-10-2012 07:43AM

Apart from the nail polish thing, it just seems "please don't dress like you're going to a nightclub".

I wonder if the lads can get away with tattoos?

anmhi02 · 10-10-2012 07:59AM

Where for the love of god is this happening?? The majority of hospitals have staff wearing tunic tops and trousers or in my place of work, scrubs. Completely agree from an infection control point of view, about not wearing nail varnish, false nails etc but I have yet to see a nurse looking like a "slapper".

suicide_circus · 10-10-2012 08:03AM

Where is this slutty hospital that i may come down with a severe bout of Sexlexia

mawk · 10-10-2012 08:07AM

Brutal Deluxe wrote: »

Apart from the nail polish thing, it just seems "please don't dress like you're going to a nightclub".

I wonder if the lads can get away with tattoos?

no the nail polish makes sense too. they try to work in a sterile environment and I'd rather not have flakes of nail polish in my food/wound dressings.

same reason you can't have it in clean rooms making medical great or electronics

Tombi! · 10-10-2012 08:08AM

mawk wrote: »

no the nail polish makes sense too. they try to work in a sterile environment and I'd rather not have flakes of nail polish in my food/wound dressings.

same reason you can't have it in clean rooms making medical great or electronics

Never thought of it that way. Then again I'm a jobless scrounger

Good point. But even aside from that, I think it honestly is "dress like you're at work and not a club".

SEPT 23 1989 · 10-10-2012 08:09AM

dismissal?

I would give them a large bonus

Slurryface · 10-10-2012 08:10AM

phasers wrote: »

In fairness I don't want some slapper taking a blood sample from me.

Seems reasonable to me.

Whatever happened to hospital staff wearing scrubs or some kind of uniform?

Personally I've seen seen an accounts clerk or receptionist in scrubs myself, but I fail to see how banning nail polish is anything other than petty sexism!

Slurryface · 10-10-2012 08:13AM

mawk wrote: »

no the nail polish makes sense too. they try to work in a sterile environment and I'd rather not have flakes of nail polish in my food/wound dressings.

same reason you can't have it in clean rooms making medical great or electronics

Since when do receptionists, office clerks, admin staff etc work in a sterile enviroment?
Some people posting seem to think that the HSE only employ doctors and nurses. Even then would you refuse to attend a GP because she paints her fingernails?

Tombi! · 10-10-2012 08:17AM

Slurryface wrote: »

Since when do receptionists, office clerks, admin staff etc work in a sterile enviroment?
Some people posting seem to think that the HSE only employ doctors and nurses. Even then would you refuse to attend a GP because she paints her fingernails?

It's still a hospital. At the end of the day it's best to try to maintain as sterile a place as possible.

Slurryface · 10-10-2012 08:22AM

Brutal Deluxe wrote: »

It's still a hospital. At the end of the day it's best to try to maintain as sterile a place as possible.

Please Oh please explain to me how a tattoo being visible, or how wearing nail varnish affects sterility?

Tombi! · 10-10-2012 08:26AM

Slurryface wrote: »

Please Oh please explain to me how a tattoo being visible, or how wearing nail varnish affects sterility?

Tattoo? I dunno.
Far as I know most places would ban them. A few lads I know have them and they can't show them in customer service jobs.

Nail polish was already mentioned, it can peel off and the likes.

smash · 10-10-2012 08:31AM

Slurryface wrote: »

Please Oh please explain to me how a tattoo being visible, or how wearing nail varnish affects sterility?

The likes of MRI machines can mess up tattoos and cause infection to the area if the tattoos are less than 2 years old. It's one of the questions asked when going for an MRI. Something to do with the ink attracting the radiation. Maybe someone can clarify it a bit more.

blatantrereg · 10-10-2012 08:35AM

Brutal Deluxe wrote: »

Apart from the nail polish thing, it just seems "please don't dress like you're going to a nightclub".

I wonder if the lads can get away with tattoos?

I wouldn't have even thought this was newsworthy. Independent dramatises though.

THE health service has defended a controversial dress code demanding modesty from staff who were showing too much skin

What controversy did it cause, apart from the little bit here stirred up by this very article?
"Demanding modesty from" people "showing too much skin" is probably the most melodramatic way possible of saying they introduced a dress code.

I was in Limerick Midwestern regoinal hospital a lot recently when someone needed an operation. Didn't see a single memeber of staff whose clothing wouldn't have already conformed to these rules already.

I did see a variety of scumbags come into the ER though. Telling staff not to wear evocative clothing around drunk violent troublemaker types is reaonable and sensible - not demanding or being done just for the sake of it, like the paper seems to be trying to put across.

FairytaleGirl · 10-10-2012 08:42AM

I agree wih all of it except tattoos - to be honest if im saving someones life or taking away their pain i doubt their gonna care how tattooed i am. Nail polish and fake nails do affect sterility though.

K-9 · 10-10-2012 08:49AM

Slurryface wrote: »

The HSE has a deficit of €370,000,000 so far this year, figures published yesterday show that 10,000 service users were assaulted, abused, or threatened last year (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1010/1224325094663.html), but apparently their biggest concern is female staff wearing skin tight clothing, low cut tops and tattoos!

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hse-tells-staff-to-dress-modestly-or-face-dismissal-3255614.html

Those are very revealing figures alright.

gobnaitolunacy · 10-10-2012 08:57AM

Slurryface wrote: »

The HSE has a deficit of €370,000,000 so far this year, figures published yesterday show that 10,000 service users were assaulted, abused, or threatened last year (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1010/1224325094663.html), but apparently their biggest concern is female staff wearing skin tight clothing, low cut tops and tattoos!

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hse-tells-staff-to-dress-modestly-or-face-dismissal-3255614.html[/QUOTE]

Is this a hospital or a medical fetish BDSM club that I was unaware of?

Lollipops23 · 10-10-2012 09:00AM

MY ex works as a care assistant in a Dublin hospital- he used to wear his normal clothes into work (jeans and a t-shirt) and change into his hospital-issued tunic and trousers when he got in, with comfy black shoes.
Totally professional and appropriate, and his work clothes weren't being worn outside on the street.
Who wears a tight mini skirt to a hospital? :eek:

__oc__ · 10-10-2012 09:03AM

Slurryface wrote: »

Please Oh please explain to me how a tattoo being visible, or how wearing nail varnish affects sterility?

bacteria can get under the polish and then transfer onto someone else. i am training to be a nurse and they dont even let you wear nail varnish in labs...seems like a fair enough request to me. it gets me out of the habit of wearing it.

dont know about the tattoo i have got one on my wrist and no one has said anything to me yet.

seamus · 10-10-2012 09:23AM

No pictures of sexy nurses. Thread disappoints.

On topic, don't see any issue. Practically every company has a dress code unless the staff basically never meet clients face-to-face. Unions living on another planet as usual making a fuss about this.

phasers · 10-10-2012 09:32AM

Slurryface wrote: »

Personally I've seen seen an accounts clerk or receptionist in scrubs myself,

but I fail to see how banning nail polish is anything other than petty sexism!

Which is why I also said "Some kind of uniform".

It's about hygiene. If you work with food nail polish is also banned. I'm sure if a man wore nail polish he wouldn't be allowed wear it either. Could you explain how it's sexism?

And the tattoo one isn't about hygiene, it's about looking professional. It's a fairly standard rule in a lot of workplaces.

HSE tells staff to dress 'modestly' or face dismissal

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