What Color Scrubs Do Medical Students Wear

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What Color Scrubs Do Medical Students Wear
Female leadership. Medical staff having conference meeting in hospital. Female doctor briefing hospital staff during meeting.

Our scrubs are made from soft, flexible fabric and come equipped with plenty of pockets to store what you need. They’re also wrinkle-resistant, antimicrobial, and moisture-wicking.

What Color of Medical Scrubs Should I Wear?

What color of medical scrubs should I wear? The color you choose should be appropriate to the position you’re in. For example, if you’re a medical assistant, you’ll likely be seen in white. If you’re a doctor, you’ll be seen in white. Even dental assistants must wear white.

Medical students are also found wearing any shade of scrubs, but popular choices are blue, red and green. Most US-based medical institutions have their own standard uniform policy for their personnel, meaning that they’re often expected to wear a certain shade of uniform (or dress shirts over scrubs) every day. Although these color codes are officially standardized, most of them are easily identifiable by a quick look at your uniform. For example, light blue is the color code for medical staff in light blue scrubs. So, if you’re wearing a light blue scrubs and working in a bright light environment like a surgeon’s office, your employer would likely make you either replace your scrubs with white ones or put you in training for new light-colored scrubs that make up part of their standard color code.

A growing number of medical facilities are creating more colorful uniforms, and choosing colors such as purple for their associates. There are a few reasons for this, none of which have to do with style, but all of which lend themselves to the unique needs of a medical professional. In addition to the typical advantages of seeing more of a variety of color in one’s career (seeing all shades of purple just makes it easier to determine an associate’s job title), there are some other advantages to wearing purple.

The first thing to note about the different shades of these pastel-hued scrubs is that some of them may help convey a certain impression about the person in charge. Think about it: if the person in charge is wearing a light blue or light green uniform, it’s probably safe to assume he or she is more friendly and down to earth. On the other hand, if the person in charge is wearing a dark navy blue or dark grey scrubs, it’s a safe bet that he or she is a bit on the distant edge, with possibly questionable views on the treatment of patients.

As it turns out, there are also some disadvantages to wearing these brighter colors. For one thing, they can be hard on the eyes, even in the safest of environments. This is especially true of medical assistants, who are required to spend long periods in the same scrubs. What’s more, bright yellow scrubs are not exactly positivity, especially when they’re paired with thick white gloves (which can give the appearance of frostbite).

If you want to dress up more casually, you’ll probably want to go with white scrubs – at least until you get to the hospital. They’re also easy to wash and they make great laundry detergents. These days, more hospitals are offering white uniforms for medical staff members, thanks to changes in patient safety regulations. What color of medical scrubs should I wear?

Some hospitals and healthcare facilities offer a huge variety of different colors for their medical scrubs. You can find almost any shade of pink, orange, yellow and even green. Different brands offer different levels of complexity in their designs, so you might want to ask your doctor what he or she recommends. If you already know what colors you like best, and which brands you trust with high quality, affordable uniforms, you’ll probably have an easier time finding scrubs online that meet your exact specifications.

What color of medical scrubs should I wear? That answer is pretty simple. As long as you have confidence in your ability to provide quality service while staying professional, you don’t need much else to make yourself stand out. White is one of the most popular colors, followed by red and blue. These two colors can combine to create very unique styles that will stand out among your peers in the medical profession. Which color of medical uniforms is the one that you should choose?

The Ultimate Scrubs Color Meaning Chart

Scrubs come in nearly every color of the rainbow, but what does each color actually symbolize? Some hospitals assign certain scrub colors to certain types of staff, while others leave the choice up to each individual. We’ve broken down what kinds of emotions each color evokes, according to color psychology, as well as the most common colors worn by doctors, nursing staff, surgeons assistants, and phlebotomists.

Scrub colors and their meanings

White: White is most traditionally donned by lab scientists and nurses and symbolizes cleanliness and purity. However, it fell out of fashion in medical settings since it’s difficult to get stains out of.

Black: Black is an elegant choice when it comes to scrubs. If you want to come off as more formal in your place of work, wearing black scrubs is a great way to do so.

What Color Scrubs Do Medical Students Wear

Brown: Brown scrubs are basically the khakis of the scrub world. Brown gives off neutral and down-to-earth vibes, making it a good option if you want to come off as trustworthy.

Purple: This color is most closely associated with royalty, but some consider it to be less professional than other colors. For that reason, purple is a popular choice for medical staff who work with children.

Blue: Blue is one of the most popular scrub colors. This is because it evokes feelings of trust, dependability, and eases anxiety.

Teal: Teal typically evokes feelings of peace and healing, making it extra appropriate in a medical setting. It’s also a top choice because stains don’t easily show through green scrubs.

Yellow: Yellow is strongly connected to happiness and warmth. Wearing yellow scrubs will help bring a cheery vibe to your patients and colleagues.

Orange: Like yellow, orange is another uplifting option. It’s also a great seasonal choice for fall.

Red: Red is a very uncommon scrub color, and that’s because it’s associated with warnings, wrongdoings, and blood. We recommend avoiding red scrubs if you can.

Pink: Pink is associated with nurturing and caring, making it an excellent choice for nurses or those who work with children. It’s also a festive choice for Valentine’s Day.

Burgundy: Burgundy is another universally flattering and dressier color choice. It’s a good alternative to wearing red scrubs.

What color scrubs do doctors wear?

Doctors can most commonly be found wearing blue scrubs. Navy blue and royal blue scrubs are popular options for doctors. However, this is not a hard and fast rule, and some hospitals may require doctors to wear a different color or have no requirement at all.

What color scrubs do nurses wear?

Nurses usually wear light blue scrubs so that they are distinguishable from doctors and surgeons. Traditionally, nurses wore white but white is too difficult to keep clean in clinical settings.

What color do certified nursing assistants wear?

Certified nursing assistants typically wear either white or royal blue scrubs. Both of these colors are on the more traditional side.

What color scrubs do surgeons wear?

Surgeons usually wear green or teal scrubs, not only because they tend to be flattering on most skin tones, but they hide stains very well and help reduce eye strain during surgery.

What color scrubs do medical assistants wear?

There is no single scrub color that medical assistants consistently wear across the healthcare industry. Some common options include patterned, pink, or navy scrubs.

What color scrubs do phlebotomists wear? Like medical assistants, there is no particular scrub color that is directly associated with phlebotomists. Popular options include burgundy or blue scrubs, or whatever color is required at your healthcare facility.

Care+Wear Scrub Color Chart

At Care+Wear, we know your scrubs have to withstand a lot of wear and tear. That’s why we launched men’s and women’s scrubs in four of the popular colors found in healthcare facilities: ceil blue, royal blue, navy, teal and black.

scrubs colors

Our scrubs are made from soft, flexible fabric and come equipped with plenty of pockets to store what you need. They’re also wrinkle-resistant, antimicrobial, and moisture-wicking.

Can’t find the color you’re looking for? Contact us directly to suggest which color we should add next.

Maddie Otto

By Maddie Otto

Maddie is a second-year medical student at the University of Notre Dame in Sydney and one of Level Medicine’s workshop project managers. Prior to studying medicine, she worked and studied as a musician in Melbourne. She has a background in community arts, which combined her love for both the arts and disability support. She is an advocate for intersectional gender equity, and is passionate about accessibility and inclusive practice within the healthcare system.