Dress codes in dental offices: Like it or not, you speak with your clothes
Editor’s Note: This blog contains follow-up commentary to a column published by the author in the March 2016 issue of RDH magazine. To view the column, click here.
Everybody likes to be comfortable at work, and scrubs are usually comfortable if they fit well. But we have to be careful and not cross the line between comfort and too casual—or downright sloppy. The fact is that we speak before we ever open our mouths. People pass judgements based on appearance. Some scrubs launder well, some do not. Usually, the ones that look good coming out of the dryer are a little more expensive. Anything that is all cotton will need to be ironed to look crisp. (I hate ironing!)
When my children were small, I did a lot of temping, primarily so I could be in control of when I worked. I never wore scrubs on temping assignments, but rather a nice pair of dress slacks and a nice white lab coat with my professional name tag. The reason? I wanted to project the most professional image possible for patients. After all, the patients were expecting to see “Lisa,” but they’re going to get “Dianne” whom they have never met. I wanted them to respect me before I seated them. Respect garners trust. I was quite comfortable in my dress slacks and lab jacket. I also wanted the doctor’s respect, and dressing professionally for his or her patients was a plus in my favor.
