# Are surgeons in bikinis a teensy-weensy bit unprofessional?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [July 26, 2020, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416 "2020-07-26T20:39:14Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)
#### Post date: [July 27, 2020, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/21 "2020-07-27T19:28:06Z")
> [@E-DUB](#):
>
> I don’t care if they unwind by singing the Klingon War song.
Umm, I’d be a bit unsettled at that from someone whose business is cutting into people and having them wind up alive and doing better afterward. But to each his own.
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### Author:  [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)
#### Post date: [July 27, 2020, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/22 "2020-07-27T20:36:20Z")
There is apparently a hashtag called #medbikinis trending on twitter.
Which asks young doctors to share pictures of themselves in a bikini.
And people are doing it. 🤦🏻♂️
_Jenkins, we work with lots of hot young doctors, but they never show much skin. Well, Smith, lets pen an article which says pretty birds wearing bikinis is unprofessional.But, we will be called sexist. Yes, but we will get noticed and get lots of free bikini photos. Hell we will start a hashtag._
Wouldn’t be surprised if that was their actual plan all along.
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### Author:  [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)
#### Post date: [July 27, 2020, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/23 "2020-07-27T20:47:55Z")
I don’t think surgeons should operate with visible bikinis. I don’t think in the hospital you should see staff belly buttons. Away from work, dress however you please. “Unprofessional” has some important meanings, as above, but is one of those words that is vague enough to give a hard time to someone you don’t like without much reason. This is too common in medicine, frankly. Concentrate on what matters to good patient care.
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### Author:  [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)
#### Post date: [July 27, 2020, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/24 "2020-07-27T20:51:49Z")
Me, too. That would have been something worth discussing. But…as long as it’s not festooned with bigoted imagery or slogans (both of which would raise the question of the quality of care their non-white/cishet/Christian patients would be getting), who the fuck cares what they wear in their off-time?
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### Author:  [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/25 "2020-07-28T13:43:48Z")
> [@VOW](#):
>
> Mind your own goddamned business. If physicians are competent and caring, and they don’t set fires, deal drugs, beat up old people, exploit children, or kick dogs, NOBODY CARES.
I think the context of the picture is the crux of the matter here. If a surgeon has a picture of themselves in a reasonable\* swimsuit at a beach venue, and it’s all more or less responsibly posed, etc… then that’s great.
But if it’s more like spring break on South Padre with reckless drinking/behavior, or the swimsuit is clearly intended to be overtly titillating (think micro bikinis or the like), then I can see how people might consider that to be incongruent with the responsibility and trust placed in a doctor. I think the problem here is that some blue-nose types can’t draw a distinction between a tasteful beach photo and/or one with alcohol, and some kind of wet t-shirt / drunken spring break type photo.
Like it or not, being a member of certain professions comes with some public expectations of behavior and decorum, even outside of the actual performance of the job. Most of the time, this bar isn’t overly high- act your age, don’t get crazy, don’t do anything stupid, and you’ll be fine.
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### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/26 "2020-07-28T14:22:27Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> But if it’s more like spring break on South Padre with reckless drinking/behavior, or the swimsuit is clearly intended to be overtly titillating (think micro bikinis or the like), then I can see how people might consider that to be incongruent with the responsibility and trust placed in a doctor. I think the problem here is that some blue-nose types can’t draw a distinction between a tasteful beach photo and/or one with alcohol, and some kind of wet t-shirt / drunken spring break type photo.
What do pictures taken at party camp (aka college) have to do with your profession later in life. This is the world now, people put their lives out in public, we get to see them as babies, children, teenagers, college students, and maybe someday some of them will also be responsible adults and save your life. If someone has a blue nose and can’t stand that then that’s just too bad for them.
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### Author:  [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/27 "2020-07-28T14:32:28Z")
I think any professional should consider their public image and how it’s perceived.
Gender doesn’t matter. Men & women should carefully consider the content published on social media.
They should separate their professional and private accounts. Dr William J Burns on Facebook. Bill Burns could be the private account.
That’s up to them. I don’t particularly care. I’ve never looked up a doctor or other professional on Facebook. Google gives me a phone number, office address, and that’s all I need.
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### Author:  [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/28 "2020-07-28T15:17:34Z")
> [@TriPolar](#):
>
> What do pictures taken at party camp (aka college) have to do with your profession later in life.
As I understand it, this wasn’t teenage or college bikini photos coming back to haunt doctors, but rather contemporary photos by practicing doctors.
That’s what I was getting at- if a practicing doctor wants to take beach photos with her friends or family and is wearing a bikini, fine. But if a practicing doctor is getting pictures taken that imply a lack of maturity or responsibility, that might be an issue. I mean, I wouldn’t feel entirely comfortable if I saw pictures of my doctor on Facebook showing him doing a beer bong last weekend. Not because I don’t think it’s his right to do that, but because it shows a lack of judgement and responsibility that someone who’s a doctor ought to have.
But the real crux of the matter is where you draw that line. If my old optometrist (who could absolutely rock a bikini, I’m sure) had chosen to have beach photos with her husband that were not raunchy or crazy, then more power to her. But if she say… has her own Onlyfans site on the side, I’d wonder about her decision-making ability in general. I mean, it’s a sort of initial filter- if someone doesn’t have the sense not to do that while holding a professional and responsible career, what makes me think that they’re going to make the right choices about my diagnosis, treatment and care?
But like I was saying, the real sticking point is where you draw the line. Nobody expects doctors to live monastic lives and wear burqas, but there is an expectation that someone with a career with that level of responsibility will know how to behave. I think in a lot of cases, there are (like I was saying) a bunch of old blue-noses who think that merely wearing a bikini is crossing that line. And they’re wrong. But nor do I think that it’s anything goes outside the operating room (or courthouse, cockpit, etc…) either.
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### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/29 "2020-07-28T15:37:17Z")
If it’s not illegal and not directly counter to the profession then I don’t see a line based on professionalism.
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### Author:  [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/30 "2020-07-28T18:28:19Z")
Frankly, it is more disturbing to me that a surgeon created a false Facebook account for the deceitful purpose of spying and publicizing relatively trivial behaviour.
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### Author:  [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/31 "2020-07-28T19:25:04Z")
> [@aceplace57](#):
>
> They should separate their professional and private accounts. Dr William J Burns on Facebook. Bill Burns could be the private account.
Maintaining multiple accounts is a violation of Facebook’s community standards. [Redirecting...](https://www.facebook.com/communitystandards/misrepresentation/)
If you want to represent your business, brand, or product, Facebook recommends you create and manage a Page for that.
~Max
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### Author:  [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/32 "2020-07-28T20:01:45Z")
If you don’t like how your doctor/dentist/optometrist/PTA president/7-11 cashier rocks a bikini, find another provider of care.
If I am bleeding from an artery/dripping brains out my nose/sporting compound fractures, I want some competent taking care of me. In the event of bleeding, dripping, or breakage, the competent person can be any gender, any race, any belief, and even wearing fishnets and a Bozo nose.
~VOW
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### Author:  [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/33 "2020-07-28T21:29:46Z")
bump makes a reasonable point.
You wouldn’t be even a bit queasy if you found out that the guy scheduled to do your surgery on Monday posted photos of himself getting wasted at a party over the weekend?
M.D.s who post suggestive photos of themselves in scanty attire\* may be risking unpleasant confrontations or even personal jeopardy, if this leads any of their patients to treat them in a less than professional manner.
\*not that the (now-retracted) paper documents such.
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### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2020, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/34 "2020-07-28T21:53:25Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#):
>
> You wouldn’t be even a bit queasy if you found out that the guy scheduled to do your surgery on Monday posted photos of himself getting wasted at a party over the weekend?
That is unprofessional conduct whether I see a picture of it or not. In that case it would be a benefit for me to see the picture and find a new surgeon. Why would I not want to know about that?
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### Author:  [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2020, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/35 "2020-07-29T01:51:44Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> the problem here is that some blue-nose types can’t draw a distinction between a tasteful beach photo and/or one with alcohol, and some kind of wet t-shirt / drunken spring break type photo.
>
> Like it or not, being a member of certain professions comes with some public expectations of behavior and decorum, even outside of the actual performance of the job
You’re the “blue nose” here, with your talk of “certain professions” having “public expectations of behavior and decorum, even outside of the” job stuff.
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### Author:  [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2020, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/36 "2020-07-29T03:48:09Z")
Don’t be silly. Nobody considers it appropriate, proper, responsible, or whatever for say… a judge to be running around at keg parties. Or for a city councilwoman to have some kind of online porn presence. Or any number of other legal, but not socially accepted behaviors, especially ones associated with youthful stupidity.
And that sort of thing seems to elevate when they’re in a position of trust. I mean, nobody really cares if a project manager is doing that stuff- it might be frowned upon by their employers if it’s putting the employer in a bad light, but that’s about it. But doctors, judges, attorneys, etc… have a higher bar, in that they’re expected to have impeccable judgment as part of their profession, and acting like that in public is often considered to be prima facie evidence of poor judgement.
Don’t get me wrong- I don’t care what people do in their private lives. But I do think that I’d be a little dismayed if my doctor was acting like a frat boy in his mid-40s and posting it on social media. And it would make me more than a little skeptical of his decision making thought process, mostly because of the social media aspects, than the frat boy antics. I mean, if he’s not bright enough not to post that shit on Tik Tok or Instagram or whatever, what’s going to lead me to believe that he’s going to diagnose any illnesses or treat anything properly?
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### Author:  [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2020, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/37 "2020-07-29T04:17:04Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> Don’t be silly. Nobody considers it appropriate, proper, responsible, or whatever for say… a judge to be running around at keg parties. Or for a city councilwoman to have some kind of online porn presence. Or any number of other legal, but not socially accepted behaviors, especially ones associated with youthful stupidity.
I’m confused. I looked at these pictures on Twitter. (Well, someone had to.) There were women of all shapes and sizes. There were women posting pictures with their kids. None of them were getting wasted. If any of them were involved with porn, it was not obvious from that hashtag.
Where did this booze and porn stuff come from anyway?
I do think that there might have been a drink in some of the pictures. But no parties that I noticed.
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### Author:  [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2020, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/38 "2020-07-29T04:43:15Z")
The one who are posting on Twitter as a result of the hashtag, I do think less of. Posting private pictures on a very public forum shows a big gap in critical thinking and is distinct from pictures posted on FB.
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### Author:  [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2020, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/39 "2020-07-29T05:24:35Z")
> [@Voyager](#):
>
> Where did this booze and porn stuff come from anyway?
From the (now retracted) original article, and from the original post:
> [@Jackmannii](#):
>
> …,posing with booze or drug paraphernalia, appearing intoxicated, HIPAA violations etc. …
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### Author:  [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2020, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-surgeons-in-bikinis-a-teensy-weensy-bit-unprofessional/916416/40 "2020-07-29T05:41:23Z")
I see. I missed that part, since no one here seemed to be arguing that doctors posting pictures of getting smashed was a good idea. Though I really don’t care what my surgeons do New Years Eve.
> [@AK84](#):
>
> The one who are posting on Twitter as a result of the hashtag, I do think less of. Posting private pictures on a very public forum shows a big gap in critical thinking and is distinct from pictures posted on FB.
I’m old, so my sense of privacy is far from what people do nowadays, but the pictures I saw, including mothers and children around the pool, didn’t seem like any big problem.
Are any personal pictures on Twitter a no-no? Just ones in bathing suits? Men and women, or just women? How small a bathing suit is bad?
And are only doctors subject to these rules, or is everyone?
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