I took someone who can’t drive to visit the doctor. When we were in the waiting area one of the doctors walked by to get something out of a cupboard.
He looked like he’d been sleeping rough for several days. His hair was long, dirty and uncombed. His shirt was heavily creased and untucked. He had a three-day growth. His jeans were skin tight and worn out. His shoes were dirty and unpolished. He looked a mess.
After he went back to his consulting room a nice old lady beside me turned and said: “I hope I don’t get him!”
The old saying goes, “You can’t judge a book by its cover”, but people do all the time. By looking like a homeless person this doctor diminished his trustworthiness in the eyes of many patients. His appearance indicated thoughtlessness because, had he cared to ponder for a moment, he would have realised that many patients find a slovenly doctor unappealing.
Who knows? Maybe he’s competent. Maybe he graduated top of his class. However, based on his appearance, I wouldn’t trust him to do a medical procedure for me.
As dentists we need to project the right image. Are our finger nails clean? Are we neatly groomed? Are our scrubs clean and freshly ironed? Are our shoes polished? These may seem like trivial things but many patients will judge our competence based on how we present ourselves.
