The History of Medical Scrubs

When we think of medical scrubs, most people would think of today’s doctors and nurses, walking around a doctor’s office or hospital, in their multi-colored, short-sleeved, v-neck tops and their drawstring or elastic pants to match. We might think of those people we’ve seen wearing scrubs in our own life, or maybe about the doctors portrayed on the television shows we love to watch so much. However, like everything else in this world, a lot has changed in just a few short years… Back in the old days, surgeons and other medical professionals would perform their duties in their normal street clothes, because they did not see the importance of a clean and sterile environment for surgery that we see today. It wasn’t until the mid-twentieth century that this need was recognized, when the awareness of wound infection and the need for protection from disease were more prevalent. Medical scrubs were introduced in the 1940’s and began to be used regularly in the 1950’s. They were long-sleeved, thick and heavy, and made with a white fabric in order to demonstrate their cleanliness to their patients. However, about 20 years later, the strain on the surgeons’ eyes from the white operating room and the stark white medical scrubs became unbearable. That, coupled with the fact that people were a little put-off when seeing surgeons in all white with blood stains all over their clothing, was the straw that broke the camel’s back, so to speak. It was at this time that scrubs began to be made in other colors, such as blue, green, pink and yellow. Today, the uniforms that grace the halls of our hospitals, doctor’s offices and television show sets are quite different from those we saw or wore just a few years ago. Now, in the twenty-first century, our scrubs are made with lightweight, stretchy material that is easy to clean. They come in almost any color you can think of, and with patterns or images on them if you want to be festive. They come in all shapes and sizes, and even come in styles that mimic current fashion trends on the runway. Scrubs have come such a long way in the past 60 years. It is very interesting to think about what our medical professionals will be wearing in another 20 or 30 years, as technology and fashion evolves. What will our scrubs be like in another 50 years? We’ll just have to wait and see!