Lab Coats – Whites Cotton Medical Lab Coats
In any line of work where you encounter materials such as chemicals or blood it is advisable, and almost always mandated, that you wear a lab coat. But you needn't be constrained by the plain white lab coat. There is a variety of style, cut and color options from which you can choose.
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The traditional, full length lab coat is white, however, cut to the knees with two large patch pockets on either side.
The coat usually has three to five buttons, lapels, full length sleeves and is not fitted. From this template, however, you can mix and match various factors to create the coat that fits your needs and style.
For a less formal look, you may prefer a half-length coat with three-quarter sleeves in a cardigan style that lacks lapels. For increased functionality, add a smaller patch pocket to the chest area in which to store pens. Alternatives to the button closures include zippers and snaps. Zippers ensure greater protection against fluid seepage and snaps can be more quickly undone in emergency situations. For additional safety, elasticized cuffs are available, protecting the sleeves from dragging.
The type of lab coat you choose will depend on what your profession is. For physicians, the lab coat's purpose is to serve as a barrier but also as a symbol of expertise. For other hospital workers the purpose of the coat is almost entirely symbolic, identifying them as part of the staff. For this group, closures of any kind may be unnecessary and they may opt for a relaxed, simple cardigan style.
For doctors and professionals working in medical labs, the typical material is white cotton or a cotton/polyester blend. Synthetics are more stain resistant, but depending on what chemicals you are working with, it may be necessary to avoid synthetic materials as some substances react when they come into contact with the material.
For people working with especially hazardous or sensitive materials, or for hygiene purposes, there are disposable lab coats with the added bonus of being highly breathable. For hospital or clinic staff, there is greater flexibility with the material and even knitted fleece is an option.
The final area in which one can diverge from the traditional lab coat is color and pattern choice. Again, for those working with sensitive and harmful substances, it is important that the coat be white so that any spill is highly visible and the wearer knows to change immediately. Solid colors such as navy, black, teal, khaki, red or even pink can serve as avenues of self expression or, more practically, as markers of status or areas of study. Professors may wear black, for example, and students, white; surgeons, teal; nurses, red, etc. Floral, shape-based, and other patterns are also available. A pediatrician donning a lab coat covered in planets and stars may be better received by (and thus more effective with) a young patient than if the doctor were to wear a stark white coat. For students, homemade tie-dye lab coats are another great choice.
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