What exactly do you get someone who is graduating high school? This is the challenge I faced a few weeks ago when a close friend’s son was graduating high school. Maybe it’s a generational thing, but when I was in high school a graduation gift was very important. I remember everyone in my life either getting me a small gift or a monetary reward in celebration of my graduation. Not that I felt like I necessarily need it, it was just nice to get some recognition for all my hard work.

Now-a-days the graduation gift is not as popular. While most people settle on a card and possibly a small check, I felt like I should go the extra mile for someone who I felt has always been kind of a son to me. Heck, he used to sleep over with my kids and play on the same sports teams. Because of this I wanted to get him something he would need, something that he could use in college. Since he was going to study medicine I decided that I would take the plunge and buy him a personalized lab coat as a graduation gift.

The first thing you need to know about buying a lab coat is that it’s a lot more involved a process then you might think. When the average person thinks of a lab coat they think of this white overcoat that is more of a uniform then a functional piece of a doctor’s medical arsenal. The truth is a good lab coat is much more of a personalized piece of clothing then you would imagine. Everything from the fabric to the size of the pockets to the length of the coat can be personalized, and every single part of the lab coat serves a purpose. Did you know the lab coats are made with specialized fabrics which allow for better breathability? That the specialized fabrics also repel stains and allow for easy clean up? I never knew that so much technology is put into these coats? Then again, if you think about it, doctors need to be comfortable throughout the day so they are willing to spend a little more on these personalized touches (heck, I would if I had to wear a coat for 12 hours a day).

So yeah, did I spend a little more than I thought I would on the coat? Yeah, but was it also worth it to get my friend’s son something that he will be comfortable in during his labs? Absolutely. I was even able to get personalized embroidery on the coat. Sure beat the heck out of a talking card.

Kimberly Green hopes to one day purchase a lab coat for her own child’s graduation.

Though you may not know, lab coat’s have become almost as synonymous with pop culture lately as they have been with medical professional. Besides being the symbol for doctors, nurses and other medical professionals the world over, a lab coat has been a major prop in television, movies, music and literature as long as they have existed.

Don’t believe me: just check your television schedule. Doctor’s have become sex symbols in recent years. Outside of being successful and smart, doctors on television shows have become fit, rarely clean shaven, frisky lotharios that are just as concerned with getting the girl as they are with curing the disease (they typically do both, don’t you worry). The fact that these “doctors” (or at least the actors who play them on television) can look sexy while wearing their lab coats just speaks to how doctors have become the new sexy “it” profession on the small, and big, screen.

At the other end of the spectrum, there can also be nothing scarier than an evil person in a lab coat. What was sexy on McDreamy can become a mysterious cloaking device on a doctor moonlighting as an evil killer or a mass murderer who has taken on the doctor persona. These characters play on the human nature to be ultimately nervous about someone who is this intimate with your health and body. Hollywood, and authors, have always been good at exploiting this fear. This is why doctors, medical professionals, and people just dressed as doctors, have been some of the best serial killers and spooky stalkers in media.

Medical professionals as pop culture symbols have not just been a recent phenomenon. As far as there has been the printed word doctors have played key parts in stories. From Dr. Zhivago to Dr. Moreau to Doctor Frankenstein, people who have dawned lab coats have played key roles in some of our favorite classic stories.

Even on television shows, doctors have always been some of the most intriguing characters we align ourselves with on a daily or weekly basis. Soaps like General Hospital Days of Our Lives revolutionized the way doctors are thought of in daily life (i.e. as sex symbols). During prime time, doctors have always been a favorite of nighttime dramas. Recently, thanks to ER and Chicago Hope in the mid 90’s, doctors on television have hit a renaissance. Now you can rarely spend a night watching television without seeing a doctor drama. From the soap opera-like drama of “Grey’s Anatomy” to the more real life drama of “House” to even comedy shows like “Scrubs”, doctors in pop culture are all around us.

Kimberly Green finds cultural icons, such as the lab coat, to be a fascinating study.

For those of us not in the medical field, we believe that a lab coat is just a lab coat. But for those in the medical field, you know that you ultimately get what you pay for.

Like most people I have always been under the impression that there is no difference between one doctors lab coat and another. Lab coats are just lab coats, right? Just cloth with pockets for prescription pads, correct?

Ask any doctor and they will laugh at this. I actually know this because one of my friends who is a pediatrician did this when I asked her why she would spend $150 on a lab coat. How was I supposed to know? But I guess the old rule applies here: you get what you pay for. You can spend less on a lab coat, but if you spend all day in it, you wouldn’t want to.

She put it to me this way: say you’re a lawyer who has to spend most of his or her day driving from city to city for court appearances. You spend, say, four hours a day on the road driving your car. When it comes time to purchase a new car that you’re going to spend all that time in, are you going to buy the cheap car with uncomfortable seats or a more expensive one that has designer seats which won’t hurt your back day after day? Chances are if you have the money you’re going to spend a little extra of it on the car that you’ll be the most comfortable in.

And like a car, differently priced lab coats have different features and comfort levels. A basic lab coat will essentially give you a coat with one or two pockets, no stain protection and very little breathability. If you can live with it then go ahead, you just won’t be very comfortable with it. Also, they probably aren’t going to last that long so you’ll have to buy a new one fairly soon.

According to my friend good lab coats all have a few things in common. First of all, the fabric needs to be breathable. 100% cotton lab coats seem to be the way to go since they not only breathe but also are more durable, comfortable, and look better longer. While most people might not think about it, the way a lab coat fits is also very important. A properly fitted coat disperses the weight of the garment and its contents (i.e. what’s in the pockets) over the entire shoulders and not just the back of the neck. This obviously makes the lab coat more comfortable.

My friend also stated that a quality doctors lab coat should have at least four pockets, have soil and stain treatment and should give its wearer a full range of motion without compromising protection. Finally, lab coats have to have a certain style. Since it will be one of the first impressions you make to your patients, you want them to look good and give them off a certain professional feel. All of these make a good lab coat, and it’s a lot more important than you might think.

Author Kimberly Green has many friends in the medical field and got this information about doctors lab coats from those who are actively wearing them in the field.

Author: Kimberly Green

When shopping for a lab coat, one has to consider the merits of a true designer lab coats versus the mass-produced, poorly constructed lab coats that some companies recklessly label as “designer”. True designer lab coats are hand-sewn, made of premium quality fabrics and have interesting, sophisticated designs. Couture tailoring details such as inside seams, rounded collar, darting and treatment with high quality fabric protector are the hallmarks of true designer lab coats.

As “designer lab coats” go – buyer beware. There is more to a designer lab coat than mere appearance. Before making a purchase, one must ask, “does this ‘designer lab coat’ have the same attributes as any other piece of designer clothing?” If not, consider buying from uniform companies that don’t assign designer labels to mediocre products. Also consider original designer lab coat manufacturers based in the U.S.

If one is looking for a designer lab coat, look beyond price and focus on the details. You can easily identify a hand sewn garment by the type of stitching and complexity of the details. Hand sewn garments often have rounded collars, pockets and finished French inside seams, as opposed to sloppy, outer stitching that is visible and exposed to fraying. These details give a true “designer lab coat”, the feel of a finely tailored ladies sport coat rather that a boxy, square cut, smock.

Look for premium quality, 100 percent cotton fabric, as the gold standard in “designer lab coats”. This is what gives the garment its structural stability and permits a sophisticated designer form. Some “designer lab coat” companies use soil and stain treatment to help prevent soil and staining in harsh medical environments. When one evaluates the design of a lab coat one must give soil and stain treatment a high priority, considering the environment and the intended use of these garments.

Designer clothing flatters and compliments its wearer. From elegant evening gowns to “upscale jeans”, designer garments are synonymous with quality, durability, and timeless style. A “designer lab coat” should also live up to these standards and make the person wearing it feel good about themselves, as if they were wearing a favorite outfit.

“Genuine designer lab coats” are “designer” and tested by people who wear them, just as performance athletic clothing and any other specialty item. Some companies create, manufacture and test their designs while others simply act as resellers. To ensure you are buying a designer lab coat, purchase it directly from the manufacturer. Many can be found online and more are found in uniforms stores across the United States.

Whomever believes that all women’s lab coats are created equal obviously has never had to wear one. As someone who wears lab coats on a daily basis I feel like I need to speak out about what I find to be issues with finding the right one to purchase.

As a woman, I just feel the need to speak out. The vast majority of women’s lab coats I find online that is advertised as “designer” or “qualities” are merely false advertisements. Most of these lab coats are poorly made from flimsy fabric, with not much attention paid to fitting an actually women’s body. Also, the fabric is nowhere near what you would call “designer” and looks terrible. We aren’t talking “made in America” quality fabrics, instead most of these “designer” lab coats are imported from some far away land.

Haven’t the people who design these lab coats ever actually wear lab coats? It seems like they don’t even know the basics of what makes a comfortable one. Lab coats made from cotton/poly blended fabric? That is so uncomfortable. In addition, they don’t hold up well to washing and when you do wash them they hardly come clean. I guess the stains set into the poly or something. Anyone who wears a lab coat during their work day knows that 100% cotton fabric is much more comfortable. In addition, unlike their cheap cotton/poly blended cousins, they clean and wash better. This means that the lab coat will last longer and, just as important, look good for your bevy of patients.

Why is it that very few websites offer women’s lab coats that are made specifically to fit a women’s body? Most say they do but they just don’t. There are sized down versions of men’s coats which clearly don’t work for me. I look for lab coats that are in women’s sizes 0, 2, 4, 6, etc, not men’s sizes that happen to fit a woman. It takes a little searching, but eventually I found a few companies offering specifically fitted women’s lab coats in my size. I even found a few that offer free return shipping- a definite plus with the purchase.

Finding lab coats online that are made in the U.S.A are rare. Those I have found cost a little more but are absolutely worth it. They are much higher quality that those imported from foreign countries, which means that they last longer (and save you money in the long run). I’ve also found that they fit better and offer some kind of stain fighting treatment. And, best of all, they help our economy.

Overall, searching most sites just drives me crazy. I would suggest buying lab coats right from the manufacture when you can. They offer more personalized service and some even offer embroidery. It may cost a bit more but it’s worth it in the long run.

Author Kimberly green has found that picking out a lab coat is easy once you know what to look for.