Florence Nightingale paved the way for the ultimate recognition of nursing as a superior, compassionate profession. Nursing in the post Nightingale era turned into a more respectable job, with schooling systems and uniforms for nurses. Nurses had to wear a hat and band to distinguish themselves as nurses and display their nursing rank. Fresh nurse students would wear ribbon bands of pink, blue, or other pastel colors. Senior nurses and nursing teachers would wear black ribbon bands to indicate seniority.