A group of women Muslim students at the Government Medical College in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram has approached the college authorities seeking permission to wear scrubs with long sleeves and hoods inside operation theatres. In their request, seven students from different batches said that wearing the hijab is mandatory for them and that they should be allowed to cover their heads and use long-sleeve scrubs to ensure that they fulfilled their religious dress code. The college principal, Dr Linette J Morris, said she has explained to the students that operation theatres have a universally accepted dress code, which cannot be compromised. “These students belong to different batches and they are not new to the operation theatre. I told them that the priority is for patient safety and the OT is a sterile area, where the dress code cannot be changed. I hope they will be convinced. Yet, I have sought time to consider the issue. We may form a committee of doctors from departments of anaesthesiology and microbiology to look into the matter,” she said. Dr Morris said the students have not approached the college under the banner of any organisation. “I don’t know what made them come up with the request now. They seem to be convinced about the difficulties and risk factors in allowing them to wear hoods and long-sleeve scrubs,’’ she said. A decision cannot be taken at the medical college in Thiruvananthapuram alone as there are several medical colleges in Kerala, Dr Morris said. “There are practical difficulties in meeting their demand for long-sleeve scrubs. In an operation theatre, hands and forearms must be scrubbed under running water. The operation theatre dress code and scrubbing practices are universally accepted and cannot be changed in our college alone. Patient safety cannot be compromised at any cost,” she said.
