If the word "tattoo" makes you visualize gang members, outrageous Hollywood celebrities, or the lavishly colored patrons of the "Miami Ink" reality show, a Texas nurse researcher wants you to change your mental imagery to pictures of nurses, lawyers and business chiefs. Like the rest of the population, professionals are getting, removing and replacing tattoos more than ever before.
"There are a lot of professional women, including nurses, who have tattoos, but most put them in places where they can control who sees them," says Myrna Armstrong EdD, RN, FAAN, professor and regional dean of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Nursing at Highland Lakes in Marble Falls. "Many dress codes prohibit them, and lots of people in healthcare facilities are not happy to see tattoos and piercings."
Armstrong has seen tattoo trends come and go while researching body art for 20 years. "One of my goals is to help healthcare professionals have a non-judgmental approach," she says. "I don't care if they want it. I'm very concerned that they know how to get it, care for it and how to remove it. About 25% of 18- to 30-year olds have them now, and it's predicted to reach 40% in a few years."
Most of them choose tattoos to reflect their internal feelings and life experiences, says Armstrong. Typically they'll think about it for a year or two. "Most don't care what others think, but they don't consider it deviant or 'in-your-face,'" she says.
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