My mum, who’s a doctor (and who turns 59 today!), thought up this super idea for my green challenge: Whenever I need to go in for a check-up or a physical, and my own doc offers me a gown, I can simply decline and hang out on the examination table in the buff.
Sometimes the gowns are made from cloth but most often they’re just paper, and they usually get tossed in the garbage afterwards rather than recycled. So really it’s best to just reduce in the first place and not bother with the whole modesty thing (which is so last year, anyway).
Plus, this means that if there’s anything else wrong with me, the doctor might be able to notice it better if I’m not covered up.
Image courtesy of this website
Advertisement
You are so funny! Happy Birthday to your mother. You could also just bring a robe from home, that is what I do for my daughter at her check-ups
Wow, if there was even an incentive to maintain good health, this would be it!
I made this change too! When I was in LA this summer for acupuncture I realized something I hadn’t last fall… I don’t really need to wear the paper gown. It doesn’t keep me warm and they rip it to shreds to put needles all over my body. I decided rather than use a dozen paper gowns for the duration of my visit, I would just go by a couple pairs of unsexy underwear. I don’t even want to count how many gowns i went through in the fall.
Oh… and Happy Birthday Pat!
My doctor said that I could wear a wrap dress to my annual. The only problem is that I never dress up, so when I wear I dress to work, people ask, “What’s the occaision?”
2 greenie points for my doctor. Her office still uses cloth!
Or why not ask for – nay, rather, DEMAND – a cloth gown? I’m someone who has to gown up frequently, and have been told (by doctors) that cloth gowns are preferable because they can be sterilized afterward. If a paper gown has been worn by (say) someone with an infected surgical incision, live bugs are being thrown into a (usually open) trash bin.
Believe it or not, the main purpose of gowns isn’t to protect modesty but to prevent surface skin reactions (which might mask a diagnosis) owing to cold air. Seems crazy, but I’ve heard it more than once.
you are a brave soul, vanessa!! this is one I won’t be doing. I get embarrassed enough just being on that cold table in the gown. bringing your own is a great idea, but for emergency visits- I’ll stick to the cotton gown.
I’d rather bring my own, in the form of a twin-sized sheet or beach towel, I think. What happens if the office staff insists that you use one? I’ve had retail stores insist that their store policy requires them to put my purchase into a plastic bag.
thanks for the happy birthdays for a day that is best forgotten!
Cotton gowns need to be washed and dried after every use. They are for the privacy of the patient and to create a separation between sexuality and physical assesment. It can be fine to throw away the coverup for a same sex physician but doctors may still be shocked if they are confronted by the complete naked body! I like the idea of a towel brought from home, that would work well.
You can buy those cloth gowns, you know. Keep a couple in the closet and grab one for your doctor’s visit.
Besides…yours will be prettier!
I never had to wear these things in my whole life! I grew up in France and now live in the Netherlands. When I go to the doctor, I keep my clothes, and just remove what has to be removed. Though when I have to remove my underwear at my gynaecologist, he changes the paper protection on the chair for every patient and trows it away. But I think that it’s not very professional for a doctor to be shocked by a naked body!