Patients visiting hospitals across Nigeria are increasingly finding it difficult to distinguish nurses from other health workers as coloured scrubs and varied uniforms replace the once-distinctive traditional white nursing attire.
For decades, the white dress and cap symbolised the nursing profession in Nigeria, making nurses easily recognisable in hospitals and reinforcing a strong professional identity associated with discipline, care and service.
However, that longstanding tradition is gradually giving way to coloured scrubs and varied uniforms now widely adopted across many health facilities, reflecting changing workplace practices, global trends and institutional preferences.
The Registrar of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN), Dr Ndagi Alhassan, says the Federal Government is aware of the growing shift away from traditional nursing uniforms nationwide.
Alhassan told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja that hospitals obtained approval to adopt different colours and designs instead of the traditional white nursing uniform.
He said there was a longstanding regulation requiring nurses to wear white uniforms with specific designs across health facilities, ensuring uniformity and easy identification of nursing personnel in hospitals nationwide.
He said hospitals later requested flexibility to introduce other colours and sewing patterns for uniforms, a proposal subsequently approved by the Federal Government after consultations with relevant health authorities.
“Today, every hospital can design its own uniform, including the colour and sewing pattern used by nurses,” he said, explaining that institutions now determined dress codes according to internal policies.
Alhassan explained that in many hospitals uniform colours were now used to distinguish categories, ranks and levels of nurses, helping administrators organise staff roles and responsibilities within healthcare teams.
“When you go to many hospitals, you see nurses wearing different colours based on their classification and level within the hospital,” he said while explaining the colour-coding approach.
A group of nurses
According to him, nurses within the same category often wear the same colour and pattern of uniforms, enabling colleagues and hospital management to quickly recognise their professional responsibilities and hierarchy.
“The colour of uniforms is based on categories or levels of nurses and helps identify the responsibilities placed on them,” he said.
He also described how hospitals organised nursing roles.
He added that some hospitals also moved away from white uniforms because the colour stained easily in clinical settings where nurses regularly handled patients, medications and various medical procedures.
Alhassan noted that professional standards guiding nursing practice remained unchanged in spite of variations in uniforms, emphasising that competence, discipline and adherence to ethical standards continued to define the profession.
He congratulated nurses and midwives for their dedication, acknowledging that the work they performed daily in hospitals was demanding and often not commensurate with their current remuneration.
He urged them to remain focused on patient safety and continue upholding professional standards while ongoing dialogue with government authorities sought improvements in welfare and working conditions.
Meanwhile, Mrs Lucia Alle, Director of Nursing Services at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said the uniform shift reflected evolving healthcare practices.
Alle said the increasing adoption of scrubs in hospitals was influenced by global healthcare trends, as well as infection prevention and control measures considered essential in modern medical environments.
“Scrubs are easier to maintain, more practical for clinical work and support better hygiene standards in hospital environments,” she said while explaining the growing popularity of the attire.
She acknowledged, however, that the absence of a uniform national dress code had created identification challenges for patients and visitors in many health facilities nationwide.
According to her, patients sometimes find it difficult to distinguish between doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers when uniforms appear similar in colour, design and general appearance.
“This can affect patients’ confidence, communication and accountability in the delivery of healthcare services,” she said while highlighting the importance of clearer staff identification.
Alle said clear identification of healthcare workers remained important for patient safety, effective communication and improved interaction between patients and the professionals responsible for their care.
She explained that when patients easily identified who was responsible for their care, it improved trust, confidence and overall service delivery within hospitals and other healthcare facilities.
According to her, the ministry recognises concerns about indistinguishable uniforms as part of broader efforts aimed at strengthening healthcare quality and improving patient experience nationwide.
She said there was currently no single national uniform standard applied across all public and private health facilities operating within Nigeria’s healthcare system.
“Many institutions operate internal dress codes, often aligned with guidance from professional regulatory bodies,” she said.
She also explained the diversity in hospital uniform policies.
Alle said measures such as colour-coded uniforms, visible name tags and designation badges could help improve identification and reduce confusion among patients seeking care.
“These measures help maintain professional identity, patient safety and transparency in healthcare delivery,” she said.
Alle recommended practical steps hospitals could adopt to improve clarity.
She added that the traditional white uniform and cap remained historically significant symbols associated with the nursing profession and its longstanding heritage in healthcare practice.
According to her, professional identity within nursing is defined mainly by competence, ethics, training and dedication to patient care rather than attire alone.
“The white uniform is very unique, but scrubs are trending due to adaptation to global healthcare systems,” she said while acknowledging the ongoing transformation in hospital dress culture.
Alle noted that not all hospital departments use scrubs as general uniforms, as institutional policies often differ depending on operational needs and workplace safety requirements.
She said some departments adopt scrubs mainly because of the nature of their duties, particularly in theatre settings and accident and emergency units where hygiene and flexibility are critical.
According to her, the adoption of scrubs in many hospitals has largely been institution-driven rather than mandated through a national directive from federal health authorities.
Also speaking, a nurse, Mrs Titilayo Olorunfemi, said the uniforms worn by nurses were usually determined by hospital management policies and internal administrative decisions.
She explained that some hospitals assigned specific colours of scrubs to particular working days or hospital departments to improve organisation and staff coordination.
“In my hospital we wear white only on Mondays and it has to be white scrubs, while other days have different colours,” she said while describing her workplace policy.
Olorunfemi said identification should ideally be supported by visible name tags and proper introduction whenever nurses interacted with patients receiving treatment in hospital wards.
“Each nurse should have a name tag and introduce herself to the patient before attending to the patient,” she said while stressing the importance of professional courtesy.
She acknowledged that similar scrubs worn by different healthcare workers could sometimes make identification difficult for patients unfamiliar with hospital systems.
However, she said that nurses often formed the largest group of staff within many hospitals, making their presence more visible in most healthcare settings.
“When you see many people wearing the same colour, it often indicates the nursing team,” she said.
She also explained how patients sometimes recognised nurses.
Olorunfemi added that scrubs were widely preferred by many nurses because they were easier to maintain and more comfortable during long clinical duties.
She said the attire was lighter, easier to wash and more practical for the demanding nature of hospital work that often required extended hours of patient care.
Health experts say while modern uniforms supported hygiene, comfort and efficiency in hospitals, clear identification systems remained essential for strengthening patient trust, communication and accountability in healthcare delivery
By Aderogba George and Folasade Akpan write for the News Agency of Nigeria
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