Doctoring in Style

Question: Which of the following people looks like a physician?

The man on the left is Pablo Gonzalez Casanova, a Mexican national and social critic, known for defending the Cuban Revolution. A very distinguished man, but not a doctor of medicine.

On the right is me, baggy-eyed rural family physician, attender of births, overworked hospitalist, and ever-hopeful blogger.

I post these photos, not for self-promotion (ha!), or even to promote the ideals of Professor Gonzalez Casanova, whose photo I chose for his distinguished mien and formal dress, but because I have lately been pondering a question: How important is a doctor's personal style?

I think about this question a lot because a frequent comment people make upon meeting me is, "Are you the doctor?" I'm not offended by this question because I know I don't look like a doctor. I don't know what I look like, actually, but I certainly don't look like a doctor. Why?

1. I'm not well-groomed. I usually blast out of the house without combing my hair, I don't wear make-up, and my daily costume consists of L.L. Bean's Pima cotton t-shirts and Perfect Fit (elastic waisted) pants, sturdy shoes, and one of many pairs of Hot Sox printed with cats, dogs, parrots, giraffes, sushi, pandas--usually in a contrasting color to the t-shirt and designed to distract toddlers from bursting into tears at the sight of the doctor.

2. I usually introduce myself as "Theresa Chan, the doctor covering today." For some reason, this is not sufficient for about 50% of people to grasp that I am the physician, not the discharge planner, physical therapist or nurse. Not that I mind being mistaken for these professionals, but it gets a bit awkward correcting people. However, I've never gotten into the habit of walking into a room and saying, "I'm Dr. CHAN."

3. My overall demeanor is best described as Jolly. I find human existence quite absurd and hilarious and I'm usually poking fun at my species. I laugh a lot. I've also settled into a rolly-poly physical stature, and with my round face, on a good day, I look a bit like Hotei, the Laughing Buddha--only wearing ridiculous socks.

As a consequence of this jolly disposition, I suppose, I end up using humor in my interactions with patients and medical staff.  This makes the days go by a bit faster and, I've found, wins me a certain popularity which makes me a bit uneasy, because it has nothing to do with my clinical competence. It's a bit sobering to realize that a broad humor underlies my professional image.

We're a casual bunch of doctors up here in Rural. Most of the family docs are as dressed-down as I am--Birkenstocks, Hawaiian shirts, and ponytails on men are the norm--but some of the surgeons walk around in white coats. I have never been a fan of the doctor's white coat. I look like a proper idiot in a white coat.

I'm going to be attending a conference in San Francisco next month and I suspect I might be meeting with doctors who actually look like doctors, so I've been giving some half-hearted thought to sprucing myself up a bit. Yet I find I don't know how to go about doing this. Book myself for a $150 haircut? Buy a business suit from Talbot's? Get a chemical peel? A Coach briefcase? Have my teeth whitened?

I suspect, when the day arrives, I'll walk into the conference wearing an L.L. Bean Pima cotton t-shirt and Perfect Fit pants. Now that I've entered my 5th decade, I find it difficult to be other than I am. When I was a teen, I tried to get my hair to curl with foam rollers and curling irons. When I was in my 20s, I tried to turn myself into an academic theorist. Yet my hair always straightened out and I discovered I was woman of action, rather than theory. In the end, it never seems worth the effort to look differently than I am, even if it means no one thinks I'm a doctor.

The real question is: Which socks should I wear to the conference? Orange mermaids? Purple bats? Wasabi-green sushi? Blue cats reading books? There's a brain-teaser.

Comments

[Dr. Val]

Are you seriously in your 5th decade? OMG - you look like a 20-something!

Also, if that conference in San Francisco is for FAMILY physicians... your style is just fine. Dermatologists? Not so much. Heh.

[dragonfly]

The cat socks sound awesome!!
And keep on being yourself!! (The only way to be). I personally have accepted and embraced the fact that I may be the worlds biggest dag.

[Dr. Ding]

This blog and this post in particular = good stuff!

I'm a clinical psychologist who has worked in long-term care in a lot of rural settings over the years, so I've taken to introducing myself as "Dr." despite feeling like a tool doing so: it just cuts through a lot of disbelief and incredulity on the part of patients and their families, who often have never met a professional female other than a nurse or a schoolteacher.

Keep the crazy socks. Keep your t-shirts. The hell with what other people think. It's supremetly healthy for folks to have their cherished assumptions shaken a little, gets them out of that near-hypnotic, infantilized state we so easily drift into when around the white-coated folk.

Rock on!

[Dr. Smak]

Know thyself. Sounds like you've got that one down.

Great blog, BTW.

[Rita P]

Wow, the mere fact that so many people from varying professions have commented on this post shows that appearance is still a hot-button issue- both to those who think of their comfort/practicality as paramount, and those who put appearances first.

I HATE "What Not To Wear" on so many levels, but it still caused me to go through my closet and avoid three-way mirrors. And really, what kind of a name is "Carmindy?!?!?" and do you REALLY want her doing your eye makeup, that blonde Crest-Whitening-Strip-pushing vixen.

Theresa, you go girl. Sushi socks all the way. I have them in three colors- orange, black, and turquoise. Though in my case it is not so much a fashion statement (they are great boot socks) as a subliminal reminder of my favorite food.

[webhill]

ha ha
I have the same issue.
I'm a veterinarian. I have very long red hair. I'm 38 years old but I'm told I don't look over 30 (seriously I am told that. I think the people saying it are high, but whatever.)

So here's how it goes down. Client walks into hospital, greets receptionist, either says "I'm here for an appointment with Dr. I" or receptionist says "oh, you must be Ms X with Fluffy here for Dr. I" and they are put into an exam room. My nurse goes in to take a history and says "Hi, I'm Heidi, blah blah blah, OK, let me go tell Dr. I you're here" and THEN I go in. "Hi, I'm Dr. I..." and I examine the animal. And THEN, at least half the time, the client will ask "when is the doctor coming in?"

WTF? Is it the handknit socks in crazy colors I like to wear? Is it the scrub tops with cute dogs and cats on them? Is it my fluorescent green stethescope? I don't get it. What is a veterinarian supposed to look like, anyway?

Oh, and btw - it's not better when they say they want to see you because the other guy in the practice "looks too young." I get that, too! WTF?

[Karen]

You need to watch "What Not to Wear" on TLC--in your copious spare time, of course! They're great for taking a professional with little to no fashion sense, and teaching him or her how to dress comfortably, not-too-expensively, and simply--but also to look appropriate for the part he or she plays in life. I agree with Beach Bum, you may need to change your costume for the roles you play when you are not delivering babies or running back and forth to the hospital. But it's probably also possible to find a way to look the way you want to look--a bit quirky, casual, relaxed--and still maintain the amount of respect you deserve for your position.

I, myself, love it when doctors dress casually (hate the white coat even though my FP, who I like very much, wears one every day)--but I do like to know that I'm talking to a doctor when one walks in the door. I would feel so embarrassed assuming he or she was a tech or an aide when in fact he or she is the doctor! And realistically, how much can we know about a person in those first minutes of meeting them, other than by the way they look?

There's nothing wrong with taking 5 minutes to put yourself together, is there? Sure, maybe in the biggest emergencies you need to fly out the door, but you could start by updating your wardrobe so that the clothes you have to throw on are a little more...what's the word I'm looking for? Meaningful? Appropriate?

Then, all you probably need is a good haircut. Makeup could be saved for those times when you're at a conference and not necessary for catching babies or rounding on sick people.

Seriously, you should check out that show--I actually find it to be a really reasonable approach to the question of "how should I present myself?" Usually it's the friends and family of the person who nominate that person for the show. I wonder if those of us who adore you via your blog could nominate you to go on? You seem like the perfect candidate!

Anyone else want to give it a try...?

[Curious]

Thank you. I was very surprised when she told me that it would be an issue... I'm glad to hear differing opinions!

[Teresa]

Your pre-med advisor sounds just a little old fashioned. I can't imagine anyone would even particularly notice an earring like you're describing, let alone penalize anyone for it. I'm in the 7th year of an md-phd program, not in san francisco, (although still in california), I have several non-earlobe-earrings, a tragus ring, and nose ring (and for the first five years I was here, a tongue ring), and nobody's ever said anything to me about any piercing, except to ask if one or another was especially painful. I also don't stand out in the least- I have had many classmates, residents, and even some attendings with multiple piercings and visible tattoos. Granted the culture of medicine is a little more relaxed on the west coast than elsewhere, but I really don't think an earring would be an issue anywhere.

[Theresa]

Thank you for all your comments.

Curious, I'd leave the stud earring in. I went to med school in San Francisco and we had all types of piercings, etc. I can't imagine it will make a difference in getting into school. Some advisors are very old school, nothing wrong with that, but if you don't make the stud earring an issue, no one else will either.

[Curious]

I'm a college student considering either a Ph.D. program or an M.D. after graduation, and I have a question for you... not about clothes, but about jewelry.

I have a silver stud earring in my upper ear cartilage that I got back in high school. It's fairly small, and I can hide it with my hair. Since I've had it for years, I doubt the hole would close completely if I took out the stud, so I'd really rather leave it in. Most of the Ph.D.-track advisers I have talked to say that their program would not care at all about the earring, but the only pre-med adviser I have talked to told me I would not be accepted unless I took it out. What do you think? Would it matter to anyone if their doctor had a small cartilage piercing? If so, I guess I'd be willing to just walk around with a hole...

[Beach Bum]

I believe firmly that how we present ourselves says a lot about who we are. And in a profession like medicine, our personal style has to say, "I care enough about what I do to at least look presentable." After that, personal style takes over.

But as a performing artist, used to wearing makeup and costumes on stage, I am aware of how powerful a costume can be. What we wear, and how we present ourselves can be used as a weapon, or at the very least, a tool for influencing those around us. And it can be used to make us feel differently about ourselves. I was always astounded at the transformation when I finally put the costume on and applied my makeup. Even though I had lived with the character for weeks of rehearsal, when I finally put the costume on, I would be able to really understand them at a deeper level.

Your working "uniform" as you have described it says, "I don't take myself too seriously, and I value efficiency and personal comfort." But keep in mind that when you want to send a different message about who you are and what is important to you, it may be as simple as wearing a different costume to work.

[Beth]

I tend to rock the argyle socks. I was wearing them LONG before they became cool again. I also have plenty of holiday-themed socks.

My typical outfit is (when I'm not wearing scrubs because I'm on call, in the ER or in the NICU) a pair of khaki pants (of which I have many varieties and styles) and a dressy-ish top (most of which are from Ann Taylor Loft or Target...yay Target!). Oh, and my Danskos. I've worn them to work every day for over a year now and I've never looked back. Oh, and funky earrings. I love wearing bold, interesting earrings.

Even when I'm on call, I usually do scrub bottoms with a t-shirt, plain or printed. My favorite one to wear is my Communist Party one from Threadless: http://www.threadless.com/product/383/The_Communist_Party

I think we get a little leeway in pediatrics for being casual, as we are bound to be barfed on or peed on at a moment's notice. Plus, life is too short to wear boring socks or boring earrings.

[Robin]

Hey, you don't look even close to 40! I was thinking oh, maybe late 20's...maybe....

[rlbates]

I have several pair with dogs on them. :)

[sarainisrael]

Thanks for writing about this, it's a big issue for me. I've started actually introducing myself as Doctor Lastname and it seems to make a difference. I hate it, feel like a total jerk, but it helps. I used to introduce myself as Dr. Sara, but that never stuck, and they'd still think I was the nurse or whatever.

The other thing, about clothes, is also a huge deal for me. I HATE how I have to dress at the hospital, and I had to buy a bra for the first time in med skool. I want to punk out my hair and can't. I am so bitter about this. Bad job decision, I guess.

[Katie B.]

(Found this a while back from Rixa's blog - been enjoying your tales!)

I wish my docs would be as whimsical as you! But maybe physicians in a clinic that's open 9 to 5 have more time to comb their hair in the morning.

I'm thinking the purple bats, given the proximity to Halloween. Or better yet - do you know a knitter? That has time to make you a pair of yummy socks?

In re: Rixa's midwife types - I'll prolly be more of a #3, if I ever get to being a midwife...

[Rixa]

I'm all about subverting the norm. I've been on the other end of things hanging out with home birth midwives. There were a few definite looks, none of which I really had:
a) hippie midwife: long hair, maybe braids, no bra, long flowing skirt often with pants underneath, birkenstocks. Classic Ina May look.
b) religious midwife: long denim skirt, conservative t-shirt or blouse, practical shoes, hair in a bun.
c) alternative/Goth midwife: thinking of Cara's look in BOBB movie.
Unfortunately I really can't pull any of these off! I wear skirts all summer long (knee length, usually more fitted) with fitted t-shirts. Slacks and a nice shirt or sweater in the winter.