NEWARK, N.J. (WABC) — Enduring a hospital stay isn’t always easy, and some Rutgers University medical students are taking a new approach to improving their patients’ moods.

Students at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School provide haircuts and shaves to patients.

Bergen Barbers Ivan Loncar, Hetal Lad, Sowntharya Ayyappan and Shivani Srivastava are all students at Rutgers.

“Medicine is holistic, you not only have to be able to take care of your patients, you have to be able to talk to them, you have to see them as a full human being,” Lad said.

They are continuing the initiative started by Vaishali Ravikumar in 2021. She now works as a gynecology intern at the University of Arizona.

So where does the name Bergen Barbers come from? It is named after Bergen Street in Newark, where University Hospital is located.

The students have no formal hairdressing training but have learned their skills, as many do these days, by watching YouTube videos.

Nursing staff helps medical students select patients for services.

The students installed a QR code around the hospital so that nurses can register their patients who want to visit the team.

“I’ve noticed how much more confident I am in speaking to patients after working here. You don’t know the patients at first and you develop a great relationship by working closely with them,” said Ayyappan.

A simple act of kindness can heal and touch someone so deeply.

Rutgers says Bergen Barbers has received rave reviews from patients so far, including:

– “My head feels cleaner and more comfortable. I feel a breeze again!”
– “Now I no longer have food residue stuck in my beard and mustache, which used to annoy me.”
– “I wish I had my wallet here so I could pay you!”

“My own hair gets tangled after two days and I can’t imagine how patients feel. They’re here for weeks and it makes you feel a little less human,” Srivastava said.

Last year there were only four students, now there are 16 and can offer the services four days a week.

Bergen Barbers plans to hold a fundraiser in the future to purchase items such as nail polish, aftershave and products for textured and curly hair.

The combs, brushes, razors and other supplies are all disposable, so donations help replenish supplies.

(Information provided by Rutgers.com)