'Pony Scrub' Offers Stylish Solution For Rapunzel RN's

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 18 Mar 2006 - 3:00 PDT

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Leave it up to an industrious anesthesiology resident to come up with the perfect solution for a scrub hat for people with longer hair. blue sky scrubs, an Austin, TX-based scrub attire company founded by Shelby Marquardt, M.D. has introduced a piece of OR apparel that is a breath of fresh air for anyone who has been forced to wear the elasticized bouffant surgical cap.

The "Pony scrub" (found at www.blueskyscrubs.com) functions exactly as the traditional slim-fitting scrub cap, with the one difference being that there is a special compartment located at the rear of the cap designed to accommodate both short and long ponytails. The wearer simply cinches the pouch in the back before placing the ponytail inside, and pulls two ribbons to close the compartment.

"Since the cap is a regular part of my work wardrobe, I wanted to create something that I could wear and feel professional and confident in," Marquardt says. Within the first two weeks of wearing the prototype to work at Houston's Hermann Hospital, she was receiving pages and telephone calls from throughout the medical center from employees asking how they could get their own Pony scrub. She sold out all the hats she was able to make in just two days.

Marquardt runs blue sky scrubs out of a satellite office in Houston while completing her anesthesiology residency. Most sales are still internet-based, making tending to the needs of her new business easily fit into the demanding schedule of her medical profession. "Anesthesiology will always come first," Marquardt stresses. "blue sky was a wonderful creation out of something that I truly love to do. It's an added benefit to know that my desire to help others has met a need in the medical community."

Meeting that need continues to grow. Houston's MD Anderson Cancer Center-Children's Cancer Hospital recently asked blue sky scrubs to create surgical hats donning their new logo. "I was afforded the opportunity to design something really creative that will complement their logo," Marquardt says.

blue sky scrubs is now working on the completion of a disposable version of the Pony scrub, with the intention of making the product available to operating suites across the country. "We are confident that a version of the Pony scrub in a disposable fabric will be a huge success," she says. "I think the overall design will eliminate the use of multiple disposable hats during the course of a single day. Something like the Pony scrub can be put on in the morning and not taken off until the end of the work day."

In addition to the Pony scrub, blue sky also offers a variety of women's mini-hats and men's scrub hats in executive, sports and urban designs.

And for those looking for the perfect Nurses Week or birthday gift for that special co-worker, blue sky scrubs gift packages purchases and sends them enclosed with a card to the recipient.

For more information on blue sky scrubs, please visit www.blueskyscrubs.comor call (877) 932-6754.