Sporting her white uniform, Chief Nursing Officer Rhonda Scott dances to "New Attitude" at a nurse visibility celebration at Grady Memorial Hospital.

White is back in fashion at Grady Memorial Hospital.

In July, Grady nurses began wearing all-white uniforms in an attempt to help patients distinguish them from lab technicians, respiratory therapists, dietitians and other hospital staff who wear a variety of colorful smocks and scrubs.

The change cost Grady Health System about $77,800, said Rhonda Scott, chief nursing officer. Stipends of $75 were given to 882 full-time registered and licensed practical nurses, while 233 part-time nurses received $50. White shoes or sneakers must also be worn.

"When the patient asks the housekeeper, 'What's my blood pressure?' you have a problem," Scott said.

Grady joins South Fulton Medical Center, where nurses have been wearing white uniforms for two years. Scott also instituted the switch at that hospital, where she worked under Dr. Andy Agwunobi, now CEO and president of Grady Health System. Nationwide, a few hospitals in Texas and Illinois have made the switch and others are considering it.

Scott said the idea has been widely embraced by the staff. However, some questioned spending money on uniforms while Grady is digging itself out of nearly $60 million in debt.

"At first, I was not in favor of the uniform switch, mostly because I felt that the money could be more effectively spent hiring staff, updating and replacing equipment, and purchasing much-needed supplies, all necessary to patient care," said Mardi Senn, who works in the surgical intensive care unit.

Senn said she's now encouraged by improvements Scott has made, such as aggressively hiring more fulltime nurses and finding money for additional blood pressure cuffs and other basic needs.

Patients peeking at a "nurse visibility" celebration in July seemed impressed by the uniformity of the rows of women and men in white.

"They look more like nurses now," said Cee Walton, who was visiting a clinic at the hospital. "Before, you didn't know who the registered nurses were. I couldn't really tell who was the cleaning lady and who was the nurse."

The return to the traditional color of nursing is also seen as a pride issue, many Grady nurses said, because it symbolizes their professional education and competence.

"We're from the new generation of nurses, and we never had to wear whites," said LaTasha Williams, 29, who was getting back to her shift on the perinatal unit. "But I've heard patients call everybody their nurse, so I think this looks more professional."

Scrubs of every shade and stripe became popular with nurses and other health care workers in the 1980s when easy-to-maintain fabrics became available.

While the casual look was thought to be less intimidating to patients, some older nurses preferred the traditional uniform to scrubs, which can resemble pajamas.

"I thought we should have been wearing white all along," said Mary Roberta Allen, class of 1957, Grady School of Nursing. She was one of many alumni invited to the event. "Back in my day, we wore white shoes, white stockings and the white cap.

"Now, don't they all just look great?"

- This article is a reprint from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.