We love The Mindy Project for so many reasons: The hilarious Ms. Kaling, the endearing cast of characters at Schulman and Associates (yes, even you, Beverly), the super smart and witty writing, and, we can't help it, the main character's wardrobe. Dr. Mindy Lahiri has the best collection of vibrantly bold prints, bright, jewel-tone layers (lots of them), and covetable, but totally impractical high heels. Despite some questionable antics—like offering Groupons for HPV vaccinations and distributing condoms to teenagers in the school gym (with a lecture, of course, "I'll tell you what's forever: Herpes")—Dr. Mindy Lahiri is at the top of her game: a successful and well-respected OB/GYN in her early-ish '30s. So is Mindy's ultra-fashionable wardrobe on par with her IRL counterparts? In honor of the show's return on April 1, we asked some real life 30-something, fashion-leaning female doctors to fact check Dr. Lahiri's enviable duds. "I would say out of all of the shows with female physicians, it's the most accurate, minus the high heels and Chanel purses," says Carolyn Pan, a 31-year-old retina surgeon based in Northern California and moonlighting fashion blogger at Life by Appointment. "I love Rachel Bilson's wardrobe in Hart of Dixie, but unfortunately, short shorts and skirts with sky high heels aren't very appropriate in the medical setting... at least not where I practice." (But maybe in Bluebell, Alabama?) Carolyn Pan "Pretty realistic!" agrees Pan's fashion blogging partner Sarah Rhee, a 30-year old internal medicine resident at UCLA. "Well, minus the Chanel handbags. She would never be caught dead in a button down shirt, pair of wide leg trousers, and the uber-popular Dansko clogs. To be honest, I probably would never be as well." Carolyn and Sarah both favor fun, printed silky tops and tailored trousers—hemmed to prevent them dragging on the icky hospital floors—and like Mindy, Carolyn likes to layer with shells, cardigans and fine knit sweaters. Sarah does emphasize, however, that skirts should never be more than two inches above the knee. Over in Manhattan—where Mindy practices!—Dr. Shirley Madhere, a 30-plus holistic plastic surgeon may disagree with the Chanel handbag observation. Her wardrobe is full of fashion mag-worthy labels like Alaïa, Alexander McQueen, Louis Vuitton, Preen, Mary Katrantzou, The Row, and Victoria Beckham. But, being a New Yorker, she's less about prints and prefers solids in the form of elegant and easy-to-wear sheath dresses, pencil skirts, French cuff cotton shirts, and wide leg pants. But the Dartmouth and Brown joint medical school program alum loves herself some arm candy. "I do adorn my arms," she states. "While people think, 'Well how can you wear bracelets and cuffs?' Well, I collect bracelets and cuffs and because I work with my hands. I just think that it's something that people look at often and it's one way that I express myself through fashion." It seems to be the consensus that dressing fashionably, but professionally, helps give doctors a morale boost and offers a higher level of credibility in their patients' eyes—especially when some ladies just look young. "Being fashionable and dressed up raises [patients'] expectations... [it signifies] that I have already completed my training," shares 36-year-old Lanna Cheuk, the director of Endourology at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx. "I think that patients that walk into my clinic likely feel more confident in me because I am dressed professionally," says Sarah, the internal medicine resident. However, depending on the hospital and specialty, doctors do need to be aware and sensitive to the surrounding environment—fashion should take a back seat to the actual job. "While I think my patients and coworkers appreciate that I dress professionally, I think trotting around in my Louboutins while serving the indigent population at a county hospital (or even when I see private practice patients) is inappropriate," Carolyn explains. "I want to be approachable and relatable to my patients. I want to be seen as a professional, who cares about her appearance to look put together, but not as an out-of-touch, rich doctor." Shirley Madhere There is, however, the uniform of slouchy blue scrubs, which seems like the perfect sartorial equalizer in a hospital setting. But fashion-appreciative doctors will always find ways of sneaking in some flair. "I usually pair scrub pants with a brightly colored long sleeved shirt—it gets cold in the hospital!—and printed socks," Sarah shares. While a rule-abiding Shirley leaves her designer duds and prized accessories at home or in the locker ("You can't risk having anything flake off or fall into an operation. Not a good look."), she will jazz up what is allowed, namely, her footwear: "The surgical shoes that we have to wear—so colorful crocs or maybe I'll take chef shoes and put some Swarovski crystals on them. I've done that." But blingy or not, comfort takes precedent when it comes to shoes, so Mindy's five-inch platform heels might not fly: "Twelve hour days of standing and running around clinic are just not high heel friendly," Carolyn says. "I've tried low heels and even wedges. I can get away with those on lighter days or one to two days a week, but on a daily basis, it's flats all the way." "It's interesting a couple times I forgot my OR shoes, so I've had to wear the heels in the OR," Shirley laughs. "So now I've kind of trained myself so if that happens again, I go for a wedge. I now have a collection of wedges just in case." Source
