It’s Time To Scrub Up! Doctors Wearing Ripped Jeans And Casual Clothes Told To Smarten Up

It’s time to scrub up! Doctors wearing ripped jeans and casual clothes told to smarten up to put elderly patients at ease



Junior doctors dressing too casually for work - with some even wearing ripped jeans - is causing anxiety among older patients on NHS wards.

At an inspection at Colchester General University Hospital Trust, some of the younger medics at Colchester General and Essex County hospitals were wearing inappropriate clothes.

The British Medical Association’s guidelines on dress code are relatively relaxed, and medics are permitted to wear whatever they like, provided it will inspire confidence among the patients under their care.




Smarten up: Some doctors at Colchester General hospital are wearing clothes that cause feelings of anxiety in their older patients as they are allowed to wear what they choose

Although doctors are not required to wear a uniform, they are required to cover any tattoos, wear little jewellery and tie their hair back.

At the hospitals inspected, some doctors were seen outside the hospital in scrubs they had been wearing on the ward, which could increase the risk of infection to the more vulnerable.

The inspection team are asking for a formal investigation, and for some, the relaxed dress code is a serious concern.



Guidelines: The British Medical Association recommends doctors wear clothes that will inspire confidence in their patients at Essex County Hospital

‘Some of the doctors are quite young and they sometimes wear jeans with holes and that type of thing,’ said Andy Patrick, chairman of the Patient and Environment Action Team.

‘When people come to hospital they expect standard to be good from the moment they arrive.’

Andrew Collier, vice-chairman of the junior doctors committee, believes the younger doctors have no need to smarten up, and said that a uniform could negatively affect the doctor-patient relationship.

He said: ‘Many of my colleagues worry patients will see a doctor in uniform as just another corporate NHS body, rather than as the authoritative leader of the delivery of their care.’

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