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When choosing the right footwear to complement your scrubs, comfort and safety should be the top priorities. Here are some of the best options to consider:

Running Shoes

Running shoes are a great choice for nurses who need to perform physical movements like squatting or jogging. Look for running shoes with proper fit, cushioning at the heel, a lightweight design, and slip-resistant outsoles1.

Sneakers

Sneakers offer support and are ideal for scrub-wearing professionals who primarily stand or walk. They tend to be more dressed-up than running shoes. When selecting sneakers, look for ones that mimic the shape of your foot, have a long lifespan, and provide a customized fit1.

Clogs

Clogs are easy to clean, comfortable, and slip-resistant. They have elevated heels that may diminish foot pain and take pressure off the Achilles heel. Look for clogs with lightweight material, shock-absorbing cushioning, adjustable straps, and breathable materials1.

Essential Factors to Consider

  • Slip and water resistance: Nursing shoes should have good traction on slippery floors and protect your feet from spills5.
  • Comfort: Choose shoes with excellent back and ankle support to avoid foot and back pain during long shifts5.
  • Durability: Nursing shoes should have a durable upper, strong insole, and supportive midsole to withstand the challenges of the job5.
  • Design: If you care about fashion, find shoes with aesthetically pleasing designs that complement your scrubs5.
Ultimately, the right nursing shoes will keep you comfortable, safe, and stylish throughout your shifts. Take the time to find a pair that meets your specific needs and preferences.




Author: Nurse Alley



Key insights

  • Protecting your feet and back is crucial for nurses, and finding the right footwear is essential for their well-being.
  • 🩸 Compression socks prevent foot pain, provide venous support, and prevent lower back pain for nurses.
  • "Anyone who tries to sell you on one type of shoe for all nurses is going to be wrong."
  • The best shoe for a nurse's foot varies from person to person, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution.
  • Wearing work boots like Red Wings Heritage Boots can be the best choice for nurses to prevent foot pain during long shifts.
  • These $300 shoes have molded to my foot and have worked for me personally, but you do not have to go buy $300 shoes to work as a nurse.
  • 🧦 Using compression sleeves and merino wool socks can help prevent blisters and sweating during long shifts.
  • Your footwear should not be on the list of things that might hurt you in bedside nursing.

Timestamped Summary

  • 00:00 Protect your feet and back with the right footwear options for nurses, including compression socks.
  • 01:09 Compression socks prevent foot and lower back pain and provide venous support for nurses.
  • 01:53 Nurses should wear a combination of tennis shoes and compression socks, but the best footwear varies for each individual.
  • 03:00 Nurses should not wear clogs, as different types of shoes work for different nurses and no nurse can tell another nurse what shoe works best for their foot.
  • 04:15 Red Wings Heritage Boots are the best footwear for nurses as they work best with the speaker's foot shape and have kept their feet from hurting during their nursing career.
  • 04:49 Expensive, but durable and easy to clean nursing shoes have molded to the speaker's foot and are worth the investment.
  • 05:37 Wear safe, comfortable shoes and compression sleeves with merino wool socks for long nursing shifts, and be honest about how your body responds to them.
  • 06:42 Choose comfortable and safe footwear, wear compression socks, and consider wool socks for better foot health in nursing.

Video Full Text

  • 00:00 - Hey I'm Alley, I'm a nurse and I'm gonna touch on my favorite footwear options for nurses and nursing students that will protect your feet and your back. So I'm dressed exactly like I would dress for work to kind of get into the spirit of showing you the footwear that I wear to work. Of course I'm missing the mask, everybody's favorite. I've worn different styles of shoes to work as a nursing student and as a nurse extern, so I've had several years to figure out what works for me and what tends to work for nurses in general. When you're working as a nurse at the bedside, it is so important to protect yourself and your body as you are working at the bedside, caring for these patients. These are my favorite options and tips for footwear to protect your body while you're working at the bedside. Now, my Nana is a nurse and she worked in the operating room for many years, long hours on her feet and she stressed to me as a nursing student that I needed to protect my legs. I have worn compression socks since the very first day of nursing clinical as a nursing student.
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  • 01:09 So compression socks are kind of tight and stretchy. They prevent foot pain and they provide venous support to your legs to help push that blood, back up your body and not overload your veins. And they also prevent lower back pain, at least for me. So this video is not sponsored. I've never gotten a sponsored deal from anybody. If you want to sponsor me, hit me up. But I have used Pro-Compression socks throughout my entire nursing career because they have the deals that they run on their Facebook page, where I think you can get five pairs for the price of three. There's always some kind of deal running. There's always some kind of promo code.
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  • 01:53 And they came in these really fun colors so that's what I picked up. And they worked really well for me as a nursing student and as a nurse. So as a nurse, you can wear your favorite combination of a tennis shoe that works for you and a compression sock. In my view, compression socks are mandatory for nurses. And of course, if you are one of those nurses that loves their joggers. Scrub pants and can't think about covering their ankles with compression socks, they actually do make compression. Sock sleeves that I use now exclusively. And they're kind of like three quarters, five eighths of a sock and it cuts off right at the ankle part. So the compression sleeves provide that same compression. So to touch on footwear, I have one big thing that I like to tell other people and tell myself, anybody who tries to sell you on one type of shoe for all nurses is going to be wrong. Unfortunately, everyone's foot is different. Everyone carries their weight differently. Everybody has a different shoe that's going to work for them.
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  • 03:00 That being said, I'm going to be controversial and come out against clogs. No clogs! --Nurses should not wear clogs. I know Danskos are very popular and they're like the quintessential nursing item to have your nursing clogs, but I will speak out against them because I think they're just a hazard. I think that nurses roll their ankles in them all the time. You're gonna roll your ankle. You're gonna shuffle through in them and fall. You're gonna be running to a code or running to a bed alarm to keep your patient from falling and then both of you will fall. I don't believe in clogs for nurses, but if you love them and if you wear them, that just proves my first point that no nurse can tell another nurse what shoe works best for their foot. I personally have been through many different kinds of shoes. As a nursing student, I have gotten the tennis shoes with arch support, of course they were white. I've gotten the leather Adidas, that don't really have support, those worked well for me, I've seen nurses wear converse, like they're going to lift weights. I've seen all kinds of shoes work for different nurses. And honestly, the shoe that I wear now probably gets the most comments from colleagues.
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  • 04:15 Every day of my nursing career, I have worn, Red Wings Heritage Boots to work. This pair of Red Wing Heritage Boots. They are called the Iron Ranger-- and I wear work boots. Because that is what works best with my foot, my foot shape and my feet don't hurt when I wear them. So every day of my nursing career, I have laced up this pair of boots. I've been a nurse for eight months. So these boots have laced up for eight months and they do need to be polished.
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  • 04:49 We're keeping it real on this channel. And I've wiped them down before I shoved them in front of the camera, but they have been amazing for my foot. I like the idea that I can wipe them down. I like the idea that I can drop a needle. I've never done that, but if I did it, it wouldn't go through and I can wipe whatever ends up on my shoes off of them immediately. These were not cheap, these were in me over $300. You do not have to go buy $300 shoes to work as a nurse. But I will say these have molded to my foot, I've worn them every single day that I have gone to work and they smell like nothing but leather, so that's nice. And they just have really worked for me personally.
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  • 05:37 That is a number one example of, you can wear whatever shoe you want to work that is safe and comfortable and helps you do your job. It's also a good example about how I use the compression sleeves, cause I'll use the sleeve and then I have merino wool. Socks for those 12 hour shifts to prevent blisters, sweating and they're long. So I use the Bombas merino wool socks. I hope I'm saying that right, also not sponsored, but this is what I've been wearing every day for eight months. So I'll put the compression sleeve on and then on top of that, I'll put my wool sock and then I'll put my boots on and I'm ready for work. You need to put whatever you choose onto the floor and be honest with yourself on how your body is responding to it. I know from experience that sometimes you will drop money on something that you think is going to be a great shoe for you or a great sock for you and you find out you have blisters and you have back pain or the balls of your feet.
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  • 06:42 Really hurt or turned out. Your toes are squished, just because you have spent money on that item of footwear, do not let yourself get hurt by your footwear. It's the last thing you need. You need to be comfortable on your feet. There's gonna be a lot of things in bedside nursing that might hurt you, whether it's moving patients or runaway structures or what have you, your footwear should not be on that list. And that's it, those are my tips and tricks on footwear. Find something that's going to be safe and comfortable, wear compression socks or compression sleeves, it's mandatory. And I do recommend wool socks or merino wool socks as well, because it's just good for your feet, good for your feet to breathe. All right, thanks for watching. And if you want any more tips and tricks, rambling opinions, whatever this is, make sure to subscribe to my channel and I'm interested to hear what other people will use for their footwear, what works for them, please let me know and have fun with your work fashion. Your scrub accessories, it's can be more fun than you think. Bye y'all.
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