Pulse
Uniform Design
Scrubs become high fashion.
By Carmen Peota
The everyday uniform of surgeons was the focus of a unique fashion show held at the University of Minnesota’s Rapson Hall in April. The event, called “Scrubbed Into Fashion,” showcased the creative talents of six undergraduate clothing designers, each of whom made one couture and one ready-to-wear garment using scrubs, and the modeling ability of medical students, who strutted down the runway in those creations. The event was a fundraiser for Smile Network International, a nonprofit that brings teams of volunteer doctors to impoverished countries to repair the cleft lips and palates of children.
Medical student Ralph Radke came up with the idea for doing the fashion show/fundraiser last summer after his plan for going on a medical mission fell through. Radke, who is just beginning his fourth year, had wanted to go with a plastic surgery team to Guatemala. “I was thinking, how can I do something now rather than waiting until I’m a doctor?” he says.
A fan of the television show “Project Runway,” Radke thought it would be fun to mix fashion and medicine and see what happened. When he discovered that the local organization Smile Network International was doing just the kind of work he wanted to support, the concept for the event emerged. He pitched the idea to the medical school’s student council, of which he’s a member, as well as to an undergraduate fashion and business group, and the Smile Network’s board of directors. All agreed to help out.
They enlisted a slate of sponsors including the university’s Medical Alumni Society and put out a challenge to design students: What could be done with the plainest of garments? Radke sent an email to his fellow medical students asking for volunteer models. Eventually, six designers set to work making clothing for the medical students.
A Night of Glam
The night of the event, about 500 fashionistas, many of whom were medical school alumni, students, and faculty, gathered in the atrium of Rapson Hall, where a portable runway complete with colored spotlights was set up and a DJ played electronic rock music. Attendees munched on hors d’oeuvres, collected “swag bags” and sunglasses provided by sponsors, bid on silent auction items, and watched the show.
Christopher Straub, an Edina fashion designer who appeared on season six of “Project Runway,” served as the emcee and showed off his own collection of scrubs-inspired clothing using professional models. Then, the medical students hit the runway.
Like the professional models, the students first struck a pose with shoulders back, pelvis thrust forward, and a sober expression on their faces, then took commanding strides down the catwalk—the students had been coached by a volunteer on how to model—wearing clothing that looked like anything but scrubs.
One garment had hand-painted neon-colored designs inspired by African prints. Another had exposed metallic zippers to reflect the look of surgical tools. One of the designers had cut 11 pairs of scrubs into strips, washed them so they frayed, dyed them black, then sewed them into ragged vests and shawls.
The clothing was judged by three local fashion-industry experts. Winner Jennifer Voth told the crowd she took her inspiration from the anatomy of the human heart. She had dyed tan scrubs red and purple and screen-printed shapes similar to the chambers of the heart on her form-fitting dresses. Clever touches included using drawstrings from the pants to create straps for the dresses and sewing matching gloves.
“I thought everyone did an amazing job,” Radke says. “They put a lot of time into it and had really well-thought-out garments.”
Three months after the event, Radke, who was all smiles himself that night, is still amazed at the success of the fashion show—it raised $10,000 for the Smile Network. “I would love to see it go on and on,” he says. “For sure, we’re going to try to do another year.”