University Hospitals North Staffordshire make a Purple Point

University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust has recently used the Power of Purple to make sure Senior Nursing Professionals are clearly visible to patients and staff.

As part of their ‘Back to the Floor’ initiative the Nursing team brought in Grahame Gardner Ltd to develop bespoke uniforms to meet their precise needs. The ‘Back to the Floor’ campaign aims to ensure that Matrons and Senior Nursing Staff are kept in direct contact with the issues that affect their patients and staff on a day to day basis.

By wearing purple, patients are aware of the seniority of the nursing staff, so can communicate directly with them when needed. Sporting purple alongside the Matrons are four Professional Heads, the Chief Nurse, the Deputy Chief Nurse, and the Assistant Director of Nursing - 22 in total.

Ian Turner, Professional Head of Nursing at the Hospital commented on the initiative;

“The Senior Nursing team decided on purple early on as it fitted the initiative perfectly, bold and vibrant it ensures that the Senior Nurses stand out. When we came to explore the colour and the options with suppliers there was very little in the shade that we wanted. We called in Grahame Gardner who, with just the right shade of purple, were able to tailor one of their more traditional nursing tunics to our needs. The uniforms have been very well received. The staff are happy with their new image and the uniforms are already doing their job, patients are able to spot a Senior Nurse and communicate directly with them as they wish.”

Staff are wearing the P604 tunic, teamed with the T3181 bootleg style trousers or the N507 dress. The male staff are wearing complementary styles from the Grahame Gardner collection. Grahame Gardner offer one of the largest stock ranges of healthcare uniforms on the market. Their huge range of colours means that they can easily tailor stock garments to reflect the colours of the hospital, department or organisation.