Scrubs that help you cope with special fit issues

Fold It Up for a Petite Fit
Speaking of hemming, petite nurses have to become masters of this art or live with pant legs that pool around their ankles. Scrubs reader Janice Gibilisco shares her tip for those who don’t have the time or inclination to sew: “I usually end up buying regular length pants and just hemming them myself using the iron-on hem tape stuff. Works like a charm and I have custom tailoring for free in just a few minutes.” Other petite style tips include buying junior-fit mock-wrap tops that provide modest coverage for a slight bosom. For slim nurses who don’t have a high waist-to-hip ratio, scrubs pants with elastic in the back and a flat or drawstring front are another favorite.

Fight Slippage with a Better Fit
Low-rise waistbands may be trendy, but they can lead to some embarrassing moments when you bend over. To keep your butt cleavage and underwear to yourself, look for a pant style that has a waistband that sits at your belly button. Boxer-style pants are one option. The more modern athletic-style scrubs pants with a wide reinforced waistband may also work as long as they are designed with extra ease through the inseam from front to back. Or you can dart the waistband of existing scrubs pants to make it nip in at the small of your back and keep it from riding down.

Beat the Heat with Loose Sleeves
Hospitals seem chilly to a lot of people, but there is a hidden world far away from the air-conditioned corridors and waiting rooms. For example, a patient in isolation might have her room temp kept at a steady 80 degrees. That’s a balmy summer day outside when there’s a breeze blowing, but 80 degrees indoors feels like a sauna. The latest moisture-wicking fabrics can help you deal with sweat. However, these athletic styles tend to be form-fitting, which can make you feel smothered if you don’t like fabric clinging to your skin.

A unisex raglan-sleeve top is an alternative since the short sleeves tend to be nice and wide instead of tight around your armpits. Wear a sports bra with this type of scrubs top. That way, if your bra is briefly visible through the armhole of your shirt when you raise your arm, it will just look like a tank top and not lingerie. A bonus of larger unisex tops is that they have a longer tail than women’s scrubs. This extra fabric provides coverage over the back waistband of your pants when you bend over. Add an elastic cinch garment clip in the back of a unisex scrubs top if you want a more fitted look at the waist.

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