An easy-to-read name tag and neat grooming are the most important individual appearance factors for physicians working in intensive care units, according to a survey of patients’ family members in JAMA Internal Medicine.
Among the 337 respondents, 77% considered an easy-to-read name tag the most important characteristic, followed by neat grooming (65%) and professional dress (59%). Respondents rated nine different factors on a five-point scale, with 5 being very important. The least important factors are physician sex (3%) and race (3%), reported Dr. Selena Au of the University of Calgary, Alta., and her associates (JAMA Intern. Med. 2013 Feb. 18 [doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.2732]).
Respondents also viewed a series of 32 photographs of 8 physician models dressed in four types of attire – traditional white coat, scrubs, suit, and casual – and were asked to select the best physician overall. Physicians wearing a white coat received 52% of the vote, compared with 24% for scrubs, 13% for a suit, and 11% for casual attire, Dr. Au and her associates wrote.
