Why Do Doctors Wear Scrubs?
Scrubs are now a common sight in the healthcare industry – from physical therapists, to dentists, to vets, to dietitians and pharmacy technicians – but why do doctors wear scrubs?
The profession of surgeon was rather unglamorous in the days of old. Surgeries were rarely successful, and the fact that most people had to be awake during them meant that there was little else but resentment for many surgeons.
Though the profession did receive prestige in recent centuries, and grew vastly in scope and survivability with the advent of anesthesia and the discovery of germs, doctors were largely unconcerned with hygiene even in the operating room. They often opted for aprons only to shield their professional attire from blood spatter. Surgical tools were reused, and patients were cared for alongside cadavers, as late as the 19th century.
So, Why Do Doctors Wear Scrubs?
It wasn’t until Joseph Lister proliferated his antiseptic practices throughout Europe in the 1860s and beyond that surgeons were able to further reduce mortality rates by tackling the greatest issue that plagued the pre-modern hospital: infection.
Yet it was the Spanish flu that further inspired many hospitals and surgeons to place great value on aseptic practices and hygiene, after it laid waste to millions of people within dozens of countries and infected approximately a third of the planet’s population.
By then, suits and aprons were swapped out for ‘scrubs’, disposable and cheaply-made clothes meant to be worn in after ‘scrubbing’ into surgery, in reference to the rigorous hygienic practices that were observed throughout the later decades of the 20th century.
Although white was the common color of the doctor, scrubs eventually took on their familiar green and blue hues for a practical reason we’ll touch upon later. Today, scrubs represent more than just a way to prevent infection.
1. As a Uniform
While many elders in society remember the days when the doctor would typically wear a suit and smoke in his office, today’s doctors aren’t often seen wearing formal attire and are more likely to be seen wearing colored scrubs, or a simple lab coat, or both.
While the stethoscope remains the trademark of the healthcare professional, doctors and nurses (as well as many other members of clinical or hospital staff) can be identified by the comfortable, baggy scrubs that they tend to wear.
It is useful to have a uniform. Uniforms help people identify professionals, but they also serve to create a feeling of solidarity and camaraderie among one’s own ranks. More than just a couple of baggy clothes, scrubs signify a professional who spends most of their working day interacting with patients.
2. As Protection (for the Patients)
In the days of old, doctors would treat patients in their normal, everyday clothes. They would rarely if ever wash up or keep their equipment clean. Before germs were understood or even discovered, the predominant belief was that the air itself was somehow responsible for spreading death, and there was little point to cleaning up when one was doomed to get dirty anyway. Blood was a badge of honor, as the bloodier your clothes were, the more experienced you were.
Scrubs were part of an effort to change that after the germ theory seeped into the mainstream and was accepted as fact among the medical community, allowing doctors to create a physical barrier between themselves and their patients, preventing the doctors from carrying diseases onto the next patient by donning and throwing out disposable scrubs.
Today, many scrubs are embedded with antimicrobial strands, and doctors wear different scrubs for when they’re interacting with patients or performing surgeries and other operations.
3. As Protection (for the Doctors)
Not only do scrubs keep patients safe by being sterile and antimicrobial, but they keep doctors safe as well, providing an additional barrier between a doctor and various contaminants that might affect their own health.
Part of the practicality of a set of scrubs is the ease with which they can be removed and cleaned, making it easier to spot and eliminate stains made by a variety of different bodily fluids. This also protects the doctor’s own clothes from said contaminants and ensures that they aren’t bringing their patients’ sicknesses home with them, or out into the public.
To that effect, there have been many a debate held online about whether it’s acceptable or irresponsible to sport scrubs outside of the hospital. Not all healthcare professionals directly interact with sick patients (scrubs have become a uniform, after all), and some doctors and nurses opt to wear scrubs outside of work simply for the comfort factor (they are not necessarily the same scrubs worn during a long shift at work).
4. For Convenience
Let’s face it, scrubs are endlessly convenient. Often baggy, easy to wear, and easy to take off. They come with either a drawstring or an elastic band around the waist, or both. They’re light, and easy to clean. They can be laundered with harsh chemicals, often in-house, and given their material costs and the size of the fabric, they’re relatively inexpensive to produce and easy for hospitals to source.
Even more expensive, more comfortable ‘designer’ scrubs will generally be cheaper and easier to stock up on than most other designer types of clothing, while offering a slew of practical benefits. Scrubs are also built for the job, which means that they’re often more flexible, and built from materials that are meant to provide additional mobility than most other clothes, so doctors don’t have to worry about their clothes getting in the way of their duties.
Newer combinations of different textile fabrics alongside innovative cuts allow for 4-way stretch scrubs with a contouring look, maximizing both aesthetics and practicality, while providing the same benefits as top-notch sports clothing such as odor removal, moisture wicking, and stain resistance.
Why Green?
While the first scrubs were white, the abundance of white color in the operating room made for fairly severe eye strain issues, especially as surgeries dragged on. Green and blue scrubs provide an excellent contrast to red and white. This gives surgeons something else to look at for a while when they need to rest their eyes during a particularly long surgery. Additionally, bloodstains are less vibrant on dark blues and certain greens, which makes the stains slightly less upsetting to the eye.
However, scrubs today aren’t necessarily green. Many doctors and nurses opt for a wide spectrum of different colored scrubs, as well as more exotic options such as printed scrubs.
