Personal Appearance Code

PINCKNEYVILLE COMMUNITY HOSPITAL POLICY AND PROCEDURE Title: PERSONAL APPEARANCE Page: 1 of 5 STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES Originator: Phyllis M. Keller Applies To: Category: Employee Relations Dir. Human Resources

Issuing Dept: Human Resources Reference No.: HHR3070 All Employees Approved By: Originating Date: 02/04/2002 Effective Date: 11/14/2012 __March 13, 2013__ Revised: Christie Gajewski, Human Resources Director Date 10/12/05; 5/18/06; 11/9/06; 3/26/07; 4/16/08; 11/09/11; 10/10/12; __March 13, 2013__ 11/14/12; 03/13/13 Thomas J. Hudgins, FACHE, Adm/CEO Date

PURPOSE:

To provide guidelines for appropriate hospital work attire.

POLICY:

This policy is designed to establish and maintain the professional personal appearance of employees that will enhance the professional image of the Pinckneyville Community Hospital. Maintaining a professional, businesslike appearance is important for the image of Pinckneyville Community Hospital.

It is the policy of the hospital that an employee’s appearance be appropriate for their occupation.

Appearance standards and requirements must be adhered to. Violations of the dress code policy may result in disciplinary action. Employees reporting to work improperly dressed may be sent home by their department manager to change clothing.

Employees must adhere to the following general rules: 1. IDENTIFICATION BADGE Hospital identification badges are required for security purposes and are to be worn at all times while on duty. Employees are to wear the hospital issued identification badge above the waist where it is visible at all times. The identification badge must be displayed prominently at all times while on duty where the employee’s picture is visible. No stickers, pins, etc. are permitted on the badge. Pins, buttons, and other adornments that are job related are allowed only on the lanyard, badge reel, lab jacket, etc. At no time should the employee’s name, title or photograph be obscured.

Loss of the hospital identification badge should be reported immediately to the department manager. Employees will be charged a fee for replacement of lost badges.

Under no circumstances is any employee to give his/her badge to anyone else for any purpose or to use or display another employee’s badge. Violations may be cause for disciplinary action up to and including discharge. The badge remains the property of Pinckneyville Community Hospital and must be surrendered to the department manager at the end of the last day of HHR3070 – Personal Appearance Code 03-13-13 Page 2 of 5 employment. 2. PERSONAL HYGIENE Excessive use of perfumes, colognes, shaving lotions, scented lotions, and body sprays are unacceptable in all areas, especially for employees involved in direct patient care. Such items should be used conservatively or avoided all together, in order to be considerate of sensitivities, allergies, and illnesses of patients, visitors and other employees. Body cleanliness includes bathing and use of deodorant and freshly laundered clothing. Employees are expected to be free of bad breath and body odor. The employee is responsible for maintaining their personal hygiene at all times while on duty.

3. HAIR Hair must have a professional look, be clean and neatly combed/groomed. Hair length, style and color must be appropriate to the work environment and worn in such a way as not to cause potential contamination to patients or present a safety hazard. Hair color must be of a natural tone. Hairstyles that obstruct eye contact and/or extreme colors or styles are not acceptable. Hair shoulder length or longer must be pulled back in all patient care areas as consideration must be given to safety and infection control. Hair ornaments must be kept to a minimum. Hairstyles should conform to business and professional standards so as not to make patients uncomfortable and adversely affect the level of patient confidence sought by the hospital.

Male personnel are expected to be clean shaven or wear neatly trimmed mustaches, sideburns and beards.

Hats or caps are not permitted unless they are part of an authorized uniform, are worn for religious or health-related purposes, or worn to protect an employee while he/she is working in inclement or hot weather.

4. JEWELRY Jewelry worn in the workplace should be conservative and worn in moderation. Jewelry should not create a safety hazard relative to the employee’s duties. While administering patient care, rings are limited to two per hand (engagement ring and a wedding band are considered one ring.)

Earrings may be worn in ears only with a limit of two earrings per ear. Earrings should be small and conservative and hoops cannot exceed one (1) inch. Pierced rings/studs, etc. for any other part of the face including, but not limited to: eyebrows, tongue, nose and lips, are not to be worn while on duty. Stretched earlobes and/or earlobe stretching items in the earlobe are prohibited. Other body piercing, i.e., navel, etc. must be covered at all times.

Jewelry of any kind other than earrings for pierced ears is not permitted in the surgery department during working hours.

Necklaces, bracelets and pins must also be conservative and appropriate to the work area.

5. SHOES – PERSONNEL WITH DIRECT PATIENT CARE (CLINICAL PERSONNEL) All footwear should be comfortable and rubber soled. Shoes must be clean, presentable and in good condition. Shoes should be leather, synthetic or a fluid impermeable material and preferred to cover the entire foot. Sandals or clogs are not to be worn. Beach sandals such as “flip-flops” or “thong sandals” are not appropriate for the healthcare setting. “Crocs” may be HHR3070 – Personal Appearance Code 03-13-13 Page 3 of 5 worn if department permits, but must cover ¾ of the front of the foot, cannot contain holes, and must have the heel strap in place. Open-toed shoes are not allowed for clinical personnel. If hospital employees have regular patient contact and enter patient care areas (such as emergency department treatment/examination room), those employees shall abide by the above mentioned guidelines.

6. SHOES – ALL OTHER PERSONNEL (NON-CLINICAL PERSONNEL) Shoes must be clean, presentable and in good condition. Open toed shoes are allowed for non- clinical personnel. Sandals are not to be worn unless approved by individual department manager. If sandals are approved, they may be worn with professional dress clothes if they are leather and dressier in style, and may only be worn in non-clinical departments. Beach sandals such as “flip-flops” or “thong sandals” are not appropriate for the healthcare setting. “Crocs” may be worn if department permits, but must cover ¾ of the front of the foot, cannot contain holes, and must have the heel strap in place.

7. FINGERNAILS Fingernails are to be kept clean and the length must be no longer than ¼ inch from the fingertip. Fingernails should not interfere with job performance or pose a safety threat or infection control issue. Artificial fingernails or nail enhancements are not allowed in dietary, housekeeping, or any clinical areas. This includes any department doing any type of “hands on” direct patient care at any time.

Artificial nails include, but is not limited to, press on nails, tips, sculptured nails, acrylic silk or fiberglass overlays, wraps, jewelry, extenders, glues or laminates.

Nail polish color must be conservative. Extreme colors are not appropriate.

Nail polish may be worn consistent with department policy. Food service and surgery employees may not wear nail polish.

8. TATTOOS Tattoos should not be visible and must be covered. Visible gang signs/symbols are not permitted.

9. UNDERGARMENTS Employees must wear undergarments at all times and undergarments must not be visible through outer garments.

10. CLOTHING Clothing must be neat, clean, pressed, conservative, loose fitting, opaque (unable to see through) and such that it does not get in the way of performing the job. Clothing should not be tight and should be styled to prevent midriff and/or cleavage exposure. It is never appropriate to wear stained, wrinkled, frayed or revealing clothing to the workplace. If you are considering wearing something and you are not sure if it is acceptable, choose something else or inquire first.

11. SHIRTS/BLOUSES/TOPS & NECKLINES HHR3070 – Personal Appearance Code 03-13-13 Page 4 of 5 Sleeveless tops are not to be worn by employees providing direct patient care. Necklines should not be revealing. Employee’s midriff is to be covered at all times. Tops, blouses, pullovers and T-shirts are permitted but must not contain any written advertising except for: Pinckneyville Community Hospital, or your name and/or department/profession. Tops with small brand logos will be permitted if the logo is less than one square inch in size (e.g. Ralph Lauren, Izod, Nike, etc.). T-shirts with logos that are healthcare oriented, related to events such as Breast Cancer Awareness, Physical Therapy month, etc. are acceptable.

12. PANTS/SLACKS Uniforms/clothing should not touch the ground nor be rolled at the waist. Clothing should be properly tailored and hemmed for purposes of infection control and safety, as well as appearance. Pants or slacks should be conservative in style, color and pattern. Pants or slacks should be worn pulled completely up with no bare skin or undergarments showing. Dress pants/capris (business casual) must be a minimum of mid-calf in length (below the knee) and must be hemmed with no frayed edges and without any holes or destruction on the entire garment. Department managers will determine appropriateness of mid-calf length pants with input from Infection Control. Shorts, skorts, sweat pants/form fitting stretch pants are not appropriate attire for the healthcare setting.

13. DRESSES/SKIRTS Dresses/skirts should be no shorter than two inches above the knee with no revealing slits. Sleeveless dresses are not to be worn while giving direct patient care.

14. MATERNITY Maternity wear must conform to dress code policy.

15. UNIFORMS All employees who wear uniforms/scrubs can choose to wear any color uniform. The color(s) should be conservative. Coordinating scrub uniform tops must be worn or a knit top may be worn with a matching uniform jacket or vest. Uniforms that display another organization’s name are not permitted to be worn while the employee is on duty or representing the hospital at PCH sponsored events.

16. CLOTHING ITEMS THAT ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE  Bib overall pants or shorts  Beach shoes, flip-flops or sports sandals  Tank tops, halter tops, tops with spaghetti straps  Low neck lines or scooped or low backs of blouses, shirts, dresses  Sheer or see-through material  Shorts/skorts  Spandex clothing  Clothing with controversial pictures/language  Denim pants and/or denim mini-skirts  Sweat pants, hooded sweat shirts, wind suits, warm-up or jogging suits, etc.  Tight or revealing clothing (large armholes, low neckline, bare midriff, visible undergarments, off-the-shoulder tops, etc.)  Miniskirts  Any clothing item with a character, writing or logo other than PCH’s logo (see #11)

HHR3070 – Personal Appearance Code 03-13-13 Page 5 of 5 17. EXCEPTIONS It is at the discretion of each department manager to allow or disallow their employees to wear specific clothing items. For example:  Patient care employees may be required to wear scrub tops and bottoms at all times.  Fitness employees may be allowed to wear appropriate athletic apparel (such as shorts, sleeveless tops, warm-up suits, etc.)  Maintenance and Information Technology employees may be allowed to wear jeans.

For specific personal appearance standards regarding your assigned department, please consult your department’s policy manual.

Violations of the dress code must be addressed by the department manager and are subject to disciplinary action. Any item regarded as a possible violation of the dress code but not mentioned in this policy is left to the discretion of the department manager and the director. Management of the Pinckneyville Community Hospital reserves the right in all situations to decide whether an employee is in violation of the dress code policy.