A white coat or
laboratory coat (often abbreviated to lab coat) is a knee-length overcoat/smock
worn by professionals in the medical field or by those involved in laboratory
work. The coat protects their street clothes and also serves as a simple
uniform. The garment is made from white or light-colored cotton, linen, or
cotton polyester blend, allowing it to be washed at high temperature and make
it easy to see if it is clean. Similar coats are a symbol of learning in
Argentina, where they are worn by students. In Tunisia and mozambique, teachers
wear white coats to protect their street clothes from chalk.
When used in the
laboratory, they protect against accidental spills, e.g. acids. In this case
they usually have long sleeves and are made of an absorbent material, such as
cotton, so that the user can be protected from the chemical. Some lab coats
have buttons at the end of the sleeves, to secure them around the wrist so that
they do not hang into beakers of chemicals. Short-sleeved lab coats also exist
where protection from substances such as acid is not necessary, and are
favoured by certain scientists, such as microbiologists, avoiding the problem
of hanging sleeves altogether, combined with the ease of washing the forearms
(an important consideration in microbiology).
Like the word
"suit", the phrase "white coat" is sometimes used to denote
the wearer,
ex.' the scientific personnel in a biotechnology or chemical company.
ex.' the scientific personnel in a biotechnology or chemical company.
In medicine
White coats are
sometimes seen as the distinctive dress of physicians, who have worn them for
over 100 years. In the nineteenth century, respect for the certainty of science
was in stark contrast to the quackery and mysticism of nineteenth century
medicine. To emphasize the transition to the more scientific approach to modern
medicine, physicians sought to represent themselves as scientists, and began to
wear the most recognizable symbol of the scientist, the white laboratory coat.
Recently, white
coat ceremonies have become popular amongst those starting medical school.
The modern white
coat was introduced to medicine in the late 1800s as a symbol of cleanliness.
A recent study
conducted in the United Kingdom found that the majority of patients prefer
their doctors to wear white coats, but the majority of doctors prefer other
clothing, such as scrubs. The study found that psychiatrists were among the
least likely to wear white coats. Some medical doctors view the coats as hot
and uncomfortable, and many feel that they spread infection.
White coat
hypertension
Some patients who
have their blood pressure measured in a clinical setting have higher readings
than they do when measured in a home setting. This is apparently a result of
patients feeling more relaxed when they are at home. The phenomenon is
sometimes called "white coat hypertension," in reference to the
traditional white coats worn in a clinical setting, though the coats themselves
may have nothing to do with the elevated readings.
The term is also
used as verbal shorthand for psychiatric orderlies or other personnel and may
be used, in a usually jocular manner, to imply someone's lunacy. In the 1966
song, They're Coming to Take Me Away Ha-Haaa!, Napoleon XIV fictionalized the
public's view of the symbolic relationship between such institutions and white
coats in the following lyrics:
They're coming to
take me away ho ho hee hee ha haaa!
To the funny farm,
Where life is beautiful all the time.
And I'll be happy to see those nice young men
In their clean white coats,
And they're coming to take me away ha haaa!
Napoleon XIV
Napoleon XIV was the pseudonym of American
songwriter and record producer Jerry Samuels (born 1938, New York), who
achieved one-hit wonder status with the Top 5 hit novelty song "They're
Coming to Take Me Away Ha-Haaa!" in 1966.
Music video made by some Dutch guys in
1983.
Biography
In 1966, Samuels concocted "They're
Coming to Take Me Away Ha-Haaa!". The public found out the true identity
when Cousin Brucie of WABC in
Napoleon XIV continued to release music
after the success of his one hit, including a Warner Bros. album of the same
name in 1966 (reissued by Rhino in 1985), most of which continued with the
mental illness theme (for example: "Bats In My Belfry"; and
"Split Level Head," which features different vocal parts in each
stereo speaker). While he did not achieve any further mainstream success, based
upon the relatively recent cover versions of his hit song, Napoleon XIV has
remained a cult favorite to this day.
Samuels still writes songs and presently
runs a business that books entertainment primarily for retirement homes.
Are Lab Coats a
Sex Symbol?
When did wearing
a lab coat make someone a sex symbol? Apparently, in the past twenty years
things have changed. Thanks mostly in part to TV shows the idea of doctors as
sex symbols has gained much traction. It probably started with General
Hospital. For those of you who have never watched the show, General Hospital is
a long running ABC soap opera where a bunch of beautiful people work in a
hospital. Typical soap opera stuff occurs in droves: lots of sexy doctors with
their shirts off, lots of casual hookups, etc.
The continuing
popularity of soaps like General Hospital led to an explosion in prime time
hospital dramas in the 1990s. Famously two hospital dramas premiered in the
1994-95 season. Chicago Hope and ER both featured sexy doctors in dramatic
situations. It made sex symbols out of people like George Clooney and Noah Wyle
and essentially set the stage for what was to come for doctors in prime time
for decades to come. Of course, Chicago Hope only lasted a few season while ER
lasted for 15 years and become one of the most beloved dramas in television
history.
While ER might
have kick started the "sexy" doctor genre, it was ABC's Grey's
Anatomy which came to symbolize just how "sexy" a doctor in a lab
coat could be. It was a show that featured just as many in hospital hookups as
medical cases. They actors were so sexy, in fact, that they were given sexy
nicknames like "McDreamy and "McSteamy". The female doctors were
not hacks either. Katherine Heigl became a big star thanks to the show as she
seems to spend as much time in tight clothing as she does in doctor's gear.
Of course Grey's
Anatomy has led to a slew of copy cats on television. Now each network has
their Grey's knockoff featuring sexy doctors hooking up and working on cool
cases in random city hospitals. I don't really watch any of them but I know the
stars thanks to the buzz. Are they sexy? Sure. Is it an accurate portrayal of
doctors? Not really. Do real doctors mind being thought at as sex symbols? I'm
sure they don't.
Okay, maybe some.
It depends of their ego.
