White Uniform Shirts in EMS ??

[charlie82]

My service up at school is looking into bolstering the uniform requirement. We are a collegiate EMS squad, non-transport, staffed by college students. We only respond on campus. Our current uniform consists of: a t-shirt with our logo and EMS on it. We also have coats to take for the colder weather. Other than that, we require that you wear jeans or other long pants and shoes.


We are looking to move to EMS pants, and a collared, polo-style shirt. Our biggest concern is making sure that we do not look like security or PD. The best way to do this is going to be a white 5.11 shirt (no one likes red). My concern is this: White + EMS = dirty. Does anyone have any experience with the 5.11 shirt, or similar shirts, and the ease of cleaning them. If it is an issue, we will likely choose dark blue.


Charlie

 

[Hoser]

White plain Stinks, you get it dirty, IE on calls, Lunchtime you name it. Nothing but hassle.....

 

[pondfly]

Why not use grey shirts? They look good and hold up with the dirt.

 

[spike91]

I also ride with a collegiate EMS service (transport) and we use the tech pants with blue or grey polos. Staff and officers have a dress uniform with a white button up short sleeve that we sometimes use for event standbys and shifts, but they do get dirty very easily. I'd stick with the darker colors

 

[FireEMSPolice]

Jeans isnt very professional. EMS pants should be a must!


Regarding white shirts, HELL NO!! They are terrible. Everything shows on them and they look like shit in short order. I guarantee you will be replacing them often. Wear a gray or maybe a sky blue.

 

[medic6414]

im not totaly against the white shirts. i have used them at every job since i have been in EMS. yeah they do seem to be attracted to just about everything, but nothing a shout wipe cant usualy fix. the 5.11 sirts are great i have several for off duty events. they hold up well and look sharp. the only issue i have run into is if you want patches on both sides due to the pen pocket. but no big deal really.

 

[HILO]

I think white is fine for ems. When I see a white shirt over cargo pants my first thought is EMS. It provides a professional image, and gives the impression of clean and sterile, which I like when it comes to medical issues. If you go dark, making sure EMS or MEDIC is screened in yellow or white letters on the back, that will keep from being confused with Police or security guards.

 

[WhiteLite03]

County EMA I work for part-time uses gray polos and EMS pants. Shirts are Horace-Small. Special Ops Short Sleeve Polo - Horace Small They're relatively comfortable.

 

[11b101abn]

Royal, or academy blue seems to be popular down her for medics.


The key is that the shirt needs ID on the back, front and if possible the shoulders.

 

[kinnelonfire75]

The last time I wore a white shirt for duty it got trashed. Commanding officers that are guaranteed to just stand around and not get dirty look sharp in white. Otherwise, I am highly against it - my duty uniform actually calls for a white shirt but I refuse to pay for the professional cleaning every time it gets dirty/comes into contact with a biohazard so they allow us to substitute anything that is appropriate (up to the discretion of shift commander).

 

[philyumpshus]

I don't see the problem with wearing "LEO" colors as long as you don't give the "LEO look." The paid guys at my squad wear black over black and they don't look like cops at all. They don't wear badges, belts, or have any devices on the shirt. They look sharp and stay clean. I always liked the dark blue FDNY uses with the big name patches on the backs.

 

[Respondcode3]

Dont go with white. I wore it for 8 yrs as a fire officer. It sucks. Any little bit of dirt shows. Go with a nice polo.

 

[amccullers]

Yea the white would be bad for ems, I like the look of gray over blue. And the 5.11 stuff is great. I have used MES fire equipment for my 5.11 needs and if you call and talk to the sales person you get a better price.

 

[calebsheltonmed23]

I've wore white and a sheriff's type uniform (silver tan with navy blue epaulets and a badge, needless to say, I've been shot at!), and the white sucks!!! I wore a 5.11 short sleeve duty shirt with the hidden document pockets, and that thing weighed a ton too! It felt about as thick as a AAA battery! I hated it so much, so glad to be outta that crap! lol. I would go with a darker color. Navy is popular around here. Officers for EMS wear Black EMS pants, and regular EMS wears Navy EMS pants.

 

[EngCo4]

Salt & Pepper gray or Medium Blue polo shirt with BIG EMS on the


back to make no mistake about PD. Navy or Black pants for the


bottom of the uniform. EMS/Cargo pants are good rather than the


"Bat Man" belts and other "tacticool" gear to also get away from


the PD look. This will look professional, be comfortable and also be


easy to clean and maintain. In addition it is not too expensive if


uyou have to buy it yourself. Migt want to get matching ball caps


to top it all off.


White is tough to keep clean and also pretty uncomfortable. Only


good for special events and parades and such.


Navy/Navy or Black/Black just SCREAM "Cops"! and can get you hurt.


T-shirts and Jeans say "I really don't care that much".


The above ensemble is easy to work in, comfortable, easy to keep


clean, cheap to buy and wears well. The pants carry a lot of stuff


without looking intimidating and actually carry it in better places than


the "Tacticool" belts.

 

[charlie82]

Salt & Pepper gray or Medium Blue polo shirt with BIG EMS on the
back to make no mistake about PD. Navy or Black pants for the


bottom of the uniform. EMS/Cargo pants are good rather than the


"Bat Man" belts and other "tacticool" gear to also get away from


the PD look. This will look professional, be comfortable and also be


easy to clean and maintain. In addition it is not too expensive if


uyou have to buy it yourself. Migt want to get matching ball caps


to top it all off.


White is tough to keep clean and also pretty uncomfortable. Only


good for special events and parades and such.


Navy/Navy or Black/Black just SCREAM "Cops"! and can get you hurt.


T-shirts and Jeans say "I really don't care that much".


The above ensemble is easy to work in, comfortable, easy to keep


clean, cheap to buy and wears well. The pants carry a lot of stuff


without looking intimidating and actually carry it in better places than


the "Tacticool" belts.

Thanks for the advice. We have nixed grey entirely, as we think it looks kind of grungy. Right now I am pushing for navy.


As for belts, I much prefer a belt to carry my: Radio, flashlight, pager, shears. All that stuff in leg pockets just bangs against your legs, which annoys the piss out of me.

 

[TCO]

white is the worst color for ems due to body fluids,etc,some places around me use jus the plain navy polo with dept logo and emt or medic or they use a yellow polo for special events and bike details

 

[C420sailor]

VA Beach EMTs wear white shirts and white shorts...

 

[Bigassfireman]

I've worn white when I worked private ems, never really had any problems with getting them clean. We could use the uniform service if we wanted to or wash them ourselves. With the service, they replaced them as they found something wrong with them ( too dirty, dingy, worn, torn, etc.). Plus, you can see if your shirt has been contaminated by body fluids, blood, etc. much easier in a white shirt than anything else. So the argument of you being able to see the dirt on them, really is a bonus. I hate to think of what I don't know is on my uniform at work everyday now that they are navy blue.

 

[Grotonems5]

I work at a full time transport service, we have royal blue t-shirts with only a star of life on the front and our company name. Nothing on the back, we also have polos that are the same color with the same logo. We can wear any pants except jeans. The royal blue works well for us I'd say.

 

[Bonanno]

Our Class Bs for EMS is this:


Navy Blue Short Sleeve Polo with squad emblem on left chest, last name on right chest, EMT pach right sleeve and EMS on back


Navy Blue Job shirt setup same as Polo Shirt


Navy Blue BDU Shorts


Navy Blue 5.11 EMT pants.


Black Boots


We also have our regular squad T-shirts. We wear the Class B's for Events and Duty Crew/Stand Bys


Class A which are for dress occasions


Navy Blue single breasted 4-pocket uniform coat with American flag on right sleeve, squad patch left sleeve, Squad badge left chest, silver name plate right chest.


Short or Long-sleeve white uniform shirt setup same as Coat


Black Tie


Navy Blue uniform pants with gold stripe


Navy Blue cover with squad badge and black leather band


Patent Leather Uniform Shoes

 

[Medicman695]

I've wore white and a sheriff's type uniform (silver tan with navy blue epaulets and a badge, needless to say, I've been shot at!), and the white sucks!!!....

98% of all or metro EMS services wear white with different variations on pants, trim, etc, etc. The Medics that work in Minneapolis have the same uniforms (minus epaulet trim) as the county sheriffs including badges, handcuffs, and bulletproof vests. When I was in medic school our uniforms looked identical to St. Paul PD (once again minus some trim), Cincinnati wears white shirts for their PD. So either way if someone wants to shoot at you the color of the shirt aint gonna matter.


My recomendation is just go with a color everyone likes and make sure to (like someoneelse said) put EMS, EMT, MEDIC, AMBULANCE, etc, etc to differentiate yourselves from PD/FD. Our service has "Class C" uniforms for our on duty personnel, Navy T-shirt or Navy polo (both with Identifying patches, markings, etc, etc) with black EMS pants. Our "Class B" is just a white button up uniform shirt with straight black pants. I personnly prefer the White "Class B" shirts for EMS but after having the T-shirt option I like them both just the same now.