House is Right About White Lab Coats!
June 23, 2009 by Lynn
 [Photo: © 2009 FOX Broadcasting Co.] |
Many thanks to House is Right reader Grace for calling my attention to an article about a recent AMA recommendation to ban the wearing of white coats by doctors. And today’s House-ism just seemed like the perfect tie-in for the article in Slate Magazine that tells us this:
The American Medical Association voted Tuesday on a resolution that would recommend hospitals ban doctors’ iconic white lab coats, citing evidence that the garment contributes to the spread of infection.
So, go figure, House really was Right!! 
There are actually several reasons that the medical community is divided about the wearing of the coats. Doctors are split in their opinions because of these reasons.
Those in Favor of White Coats Argue:
- the coat instills docs with a humbling sense of responsibility
- puts patients at ease
Those against Use of White Coats Say:
- an alienating symbol of medical hubris
- the coats harbor potentially harmful bacteria
- may cause “white coat hypertension”
What are your opinions about the coats? do you think doctors should wear them, or not? Let us know!
What can I say??? I’m working in a profession where you’re supposed to wear a lab coat. But most of the time I try not to do so. Thing is: I hate it, I’m used to working without one and in a way it’s way cooler
That’s why I always enjoy the times when my boss is not around. But when he is I gotta be careful…
lab coats should be banned. They have absolutely no use other than to prevent doctors from washing their clothes more regularly, and to nurse their angeliv like superior behavior. And it makes me sick
Being a med student I see the two sides of the medal. On the one hand these coats protect the doctor himself (from getting blood on his clothes etc.) but on the other hand they really help spreading bacteria and all kinds of pathogen stuff around the hospital. And I think the latter ist more important thus making the coats rather ineffective. If a doctor would change into a clean labcoat everytime they see a patient labcoats they wouldn’t be a problem, but show me one doctor who has time to change that thing after every patient (and has enough labcoats in store to do so as well *lol*). The psychological effect is not to underestimate as well. I can even witness this on myself. When somebody with a white coat takes my blood pressure it’s usually higher than it is when I do it myself or have someone else without the typcial lab coat get it done.
I don’t mind wearing the labcoat but I prefer going without it (especially in summer).
@ Sandra: Yeah, in summer it’s just… Oh well, you know yourself. Sometimes even air condition won’t help, but I guess that depends on the location of your workplace in the building and in which city you’re working.
As an RN I’ve often wondered why they think the Doc’s civies will be any cleaner than the lab coat by shift’s end. At least the patient has some idea who their speaking to (Lord knows they can’t tell RNs, LPNs & Housekeeping apart anymore) and lab coats can be numbered & tracked & turned in for proper cleaning at the hospital site tied to a simple parking deductible point system. Who the heck knows how their being cleaned at home…or if they are. !
I don’t like them. And I don’t like ties on male doctors either. But most of all, I want to know if my doctor, your doctor, WASHES HIS HANDS before seeing each patient! I don’t see my doctor wash his hands, so I have no idea if he has or hasn’t. I want to know if/how they dissinfect the washrooms and the waiting rooms…and the door knobs. And finally, can WE wear face masks and gloves when we go to the doctor’s office or hospital? Maybe bring our own rubbing alcohol or bleach. Am I being crazy?
Grace: Sounds almost like Monk
If our immune systems are working properly, we should be able to cope with most bacteriae and viruses. Same thing with allergens. A little hygiene is ok, but being too clean did cause the rise in allergies. But still, to prevent infections in places like hospitals, it’s better to wash, even if it takes some time.
Greg: most of the time you end up at a docot’s office when your immune systm is not working properly anymore, so I think some monk-isms beeing a patient is not a bad habbit
panda: Depends on how much you value your health. Sometimes there’s nothing like staying at home a while longer – it’s like a vacation if you feel a bit better
And besides, I think most of us don’t want to behave in a way Michael Jackson did all those years ago. Or the Japanese for that matter with all the smog… But then, as long as you wear a smile on that face mask…
This info is incorrect. The AMA has NOT recommended banning labcoats. They have decided to give more study to the matter.
Tell me what physicians SHOULD wear if not labcoats? Does anyone really think colored street clothing would be better than white coats that can be changed during the workday if required.
Labcoats offer protection for the doctor and lots and lots of needed pockets. Women’s sportswear especially provides few pockets.
If lab coats provide physicians some kind of protection, they must continue using them. The real issue here is how these lab coats are being cleaned. So why not focus on implementing strict rules on keeping the pathogen, as you call it, from harming other people, patients and medical practitioners alike. If lab coats are going to be banned, what’s the next thing to be eradicated? Medical scrubs?
I think they should continue wearing the lab coats. but i do see both sides of this argument! I want to be a doctor and I think the lab coats are professional. So then it is easy to tell the doctors from the nurses! If they wear clothes they can still spread bacteria from going patient to patient! And your in a hospital there are all kinds of sick people anyway!
First consider getting get rid of filthy neck ties and wrist watches that definitely discourage hand washing. I don’t know many physicians who wash their their Rolexes!
If labcoats are a problem, and I doubt they are, just ban longer sleeved ones.
Keep the coats. Have the doc’s turn them in at the end of a shift or if they are there longer, they have to change out with a clean one every certain amount of hours. This way They can monitor that the coats are being properly sterilized every day. Make it protocol that the doc’s must visibly wash their hands as they or the patient walks in the room. That will help put the patient at ease… or at least the hypochondriac’s… keep in mind that hospital’s are a tid bit cooler than a comfortable room temp for a reason. It may be uncomfortable but it decreases the chances of people getting the germs that everyone is so afraid of. Bacteria likes Heat! Yes lab coats should probably be monitored in their washing, but so should scrub’s and the suits some physician’s wear. With today’s economy we really can’t afford to waste more time and money on the Lab Coat police now can we. Stop complaining! If your already in a hospital, chances are that your already sick and not all that concerned with getting ’sicker’, just getting treatment and getting better. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never caught something by going to the hospital accept for the meds I need to improve my condition.
Heather: If you can’t get sick from a hospital then what’s a staff infection. When my sister was young she went to a hospital and she caught two other diseases and it wasn’t until she was taken out of the hospital til got better.
a STAPH Infection also known as STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS is a group of bacteria that can cause many different diseases and you can pick it up anywhere.The name “Staphylococcus” comes from the Greek staphyle, meaning a bunch of grapes, and kokkos, meaning berry, and that is what Staph look like under the microscope, like a bunch of grapes or little round berries. (In technical terms, these are gram-positive, facultative anaerobic, usually unencapsulated cocci.)Over 30 different types of Staphylococci can infect humans, but most infections are caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Staphylococci can be found normally in the nose and on the skin (and less commonly in other locations) of 20%-30% of healthy adults. In the majority of cases, the bacteria do not cause disease. However, damage to the skin or other injury may allow the bacteria to overcome the natural protective mechanisms of the body, leading to infection. Anyone can develop a Staph infection, although certain groups of people are at greater risk, including newborn infants, breastfeeding women, and people with chronic conditions such as diabetes, cancer, vascular disease, and lung disease. those with skin injuries or disorders, intravenous catheters, surgical incisions, and those with a weakened immune system all have an increased risk of developing Staph infections. So its not only possible to get an infection in a hospital and if you read what I wrote before, you would have noticed that I said, “that hospital’s are a tid bit cooler than a comfortable room temp for a reason. It may be uncomfortable but it DECREASES the chances of people getting the germs that everyone is so afraid of.” I understand that its frustrating when a loved one gets sick, but you can’t blame the hospital every time. I’m not saying that she didn’t get the diseases from the hospital, but I am saying that the chances of getting a staph infection is possible no matter where you are and the infection opens flood gates for other diseases. I’m studying to be an EMT and one of the things my instructor always tells me is that the biggest part of caring for a patient starts when the medical help arrives. Recovery happens differently with every patient and though she may have gotten better when at home, do you honestly think that the hard working people in the hospital are going to purposely infect her by not cleaning the facilities properly? Someone might have screwed up and not cleaned something properly that she may have touched or come in contact with but the chances of that happening is less great in a hospital than you would in other public places.
what is the brand of lab coat thirteen wears? it’s very well fitted, I would like to buy a few. I’m all for lab coats as long as they are washed daily. I believe there was a recent study about hand washing
that gives more evidence about disease spread in hospitals than lab coats. I did work with a md/ phd student whose lab coat was drenched in s35. sloppy and dangerous. he spread it all through the lab. ugh.
please let me know about the lab coat.
I have also been looking for a lab coat like Thirteen wears. I can’t find any that are that long and still fitted! I’m a vet, I like wearing a long coat because it keeps the hair, dog slobber, etc. off of my clothes. I have my lab coats laundered frequently, and I always wash my hands when I go into an exam room, even if I’ve just washed them out of view of the clients.(I wash them about a gazillion times a day).
Can anyone tell us where to get those lab coats?