How Important is Style in Modern Dental Scrubs?

The clothing people wear reflects the time they live in. This is where style and fashion intersect and can create a snapshot of a particular era. Think of the 1960s or 1970s and you probably can paint a swift mental picture of what people might look like in their everyday clothes.


Medical workwear, and dental scrubs, are not immune from this.

At one time, medical uniforms would have been very formal, with lots of details we would now think of as superfluous to how they function.

Think of how doctors and dentists would, typically, be restricted wearing to white lab coats.

Or, imagine nurses in pinafores and hats. In fact, in the UK, it is only relatively recently that some nursing uniforms have become far more practical and utilitarian.

Nowadays, the overwhelming majority of staff in dental practices will wear scrubs of one sort or another.

But is there a risk that these can be almost too anonymously functional?


Style, Formality and Authority

There are good reasons why medical scrubs have taken over as the uniform of choice for many. They are easy to work in, and to clean. They are hardwearing and they are gender-neutral – there was always something old-fashioned and prim about nurses in pinafores and hats.

However, scrubs also reflect the changing relationship between medical professionals and their patients.

Originally, medical professionals were very much authority figures, to whom patients deferred totally. This would be reflected in the stiff formality of the uniform styles adopted.

Now, however, the relationships patients and the public have with doctors, dentists, nurses and others is more balanced.

Patients are encouraged to be inquisitive and empowered. Treatment involves dialogue and choice. Consultation is far more of a two-way process.

Consequently, the image of medical professionals has shifted. Approachability is key.


How can scrubs help?

It is about perception. How does the patient view the dentist or doctor? Some of this will be appearance-based.

Scrubs are a form of visual identification and codification, but they also keep the wearer looking comfortable and at ease, and therefore accessible to the patient.


Does the Style of Scrubs Matter?

Looking the part can be a critical way of bolstering someone’s professional confidence, as well as helping others have a high degree of confidence in them.

Pastelli UK’s range of modern medical and dental scrubs is designed to be functional and visually appealing, drawing on the practical elements of scrubs but adding an underlying sense of style in the cut and materials we use.

Being stylish in the workplace is neither a trivial nor a marginal issue: it is an extension of the wearer’s role and personality and, crucially, the brand of the practice in which they work.


“How people experience your services isn’t just about treatments. It matters greatly how they perceive the people delivering these treatments and for this reason appearances matter. Pastelli’s solution is to combine practicality and modern functionality with a sheer stylishness that humanises staff but also emphasises the professional aspects of their roles.”

Joanne Hunt, Pastelli UK