Dress to impress

A Facebook post by a trainee dental nurse caught our eye recently. Having been reprimanded by an assessor for not wearing make up and therefore appearing ‘unapproachable and unhappy’, she appealed to fellow DNs to advise.

She writes: ‘I'm a trainee dental nurse and today I have a new assessor watch me at work, she was happy with how I did everything however she complained about my appearance she said I HAVE to wear a bit of make up (I am completely natural for work) and she said I look ‘unapproachable’ because I'm not wearing it? Also, my hair was in a bun and I had baby hairs sticking out and she told me I had to hairspray them back so it looks as tight as possible is this all correct? I've been working at my practice for six months – and none of the other nurses do this – and my practice has never complained. However, my assessor says I must do it at all times or I'll be in trouble! I don't feel comfortable wearing make-up for work, it takes me too long to do and I just cannot be bothered with it. Does that make me look unapproachable and unhappy at work?’