Guides · patient gowns
Patient Experience and Gowns: Why Gown Choice Matters to Patients
A gown is the first thing that changes when a patient is admitted. Here is what research says about gowns and wellbeing, what patients notice, and how to reflect it in your gown specification.
Gown choice matters to patients because a gown is the first thing that changes when someone is admitted: their own clothes go, and with them some of their privacy, comfort and sense of control. A gown that gapes, scratches, does not fit or looks worn tells patients something about how they are regarded, whether or not anyone intends it. Getting the gown right is one of the cheapest improvements to patient experience a hospital can make.
This article looks at what research has found about gowns and wellbeing, what patients notice, and how buyers can translate that into a specification.
What the research says
The most widely cited work on this topic is a 2020 paper by Morton and colleagues, "Baring all: the impact of the hospital gown on patient well-being", published in the British Journal of Health Psychology. Its qualitative analysis identified three main themes in how people experience the gown: the gown as a symbol of the sick role, a sense of relinquishing control to medical professionals, and emotional and physical vulnerability. The authors concluded that the current design of the hospital gown is not fit for purpose and affects patient wellbeing negatively.
The same debate has reached clinical journals. In a 2020 opinion piece in The BMJ, geriatrician David Oliver questioned the routine use of open-backed gowns and how much real dignity they offer patients.
You do not need to accept every conclusion to take the practical point: patients notice their gowns, and the experience of wearing one affects how they feel about their care.
What patients actually notice
Feedback from patients and nurses tends to cluster around a handful of issues.
Exposure
The classic complaint is the back that will not stay closed. Patients walking to the bathroom, sitting up in bed or being moved to imaging feel exposed. Designs with a generous overlap, wrap-around backs or extra fastenings reduce this. We cover design options in patient gown dignity.
Fit
A gown that is too small exposes more and restricts movement; one that is far too large swamps the patient and can be a trip hazard. Offering a realistic range of sizes, including larger sizes, makes a visible difference.
Comfort and temperature
Rough, stiff or thin fabric is noticed immediately. Patients in cold air-conditioned wards often feel chilly in a short-sleeved gown, while others in warmer areas want something light. Fabric choice and sleeve length should reflect the ward.
Appearance
A faded, greyed or stained gown suggests poor hygiene, even when it is perfectly clean. Patients and visitors judge cleanliness partly by what they see. Retiring worn gowns and choosing colours or prints that age well help here.
Control
Being able to put a gown on and fasten it without help matters, particularly to younger and more independent patients. Fastenings that patients can manage themselves, and clear front-and-back design, restore a small amount of control.
Modesty and cultural expectations
In the UAE, many patients have strong expectations of modesty, and some will not be comfortable in an open-backed gown at all. Longer gowns, longer sleeves, wrap-around designs or tops and trousers can respond to this. See modest patient gowns for options.
Turning patient experience into a specification
The table below links common patient concerns to specification choices. These are starting points to test, not rules.
| Patient concern | Specification options to consider |
|---|---|
| Back gaping open | Wrap-around back, generous overlap, additional ties or press studs |
| Feeling exposed while walking | Longer length, tops and trousers for mobile patients |
| Feeling cold in AC wards | Long sleeves, slightly heavier fabric, or a separate dressing gown |
| Rough or stiff fabric | Cotton or cotton-rich poly-cotton, tested after repeated laundering |
| Poor fit | Wider size range including larger and paediatric sizes |
| Worn or stained appearance | Mid-tone colours or small prints; firm retirement criteria |
| Difficulty dressing alone | Simple fastenings, clear front and back, fewer ties at the back |
| Modesty needs | Longer gowns, long sleeves, wrap-around styles |
Clinical access still comes first. Shoulder openings for IV lines, access for monitoring and imaging requirements may limit what is possible on particular wards. Work with clinical teams to find the design that balances access with dignity.
Asking patients and staff
The best evidence for your own hospital comes from your own patients and nurses. A few practical ways to gather it:
- Add a gown question to existing feedback. A single question about gown comfort and privacy in your patient experience survey costs little and gives a baseline.
- Ask nurses which complaints they hear. Ward staff hear the same remarks repeatedly and can tell you which design faults cause the most trouble.
- Trial a new design on one ward. Run a structured trial alongside the current gown and collect feedback from patients and staff. See patient gown sample and wear trial.
- Include patient representatives. Where your hospital has a patient advisory group, ask them to review shortlisted designs.
- Recheck after laundering. A gown that feels good new may feel different after many washes, so collect feedback on laundered samples too.
Where gowns are not necessary
Part of improving gown experience is not using gowns when they are not needed. Some hospitals encourage patients who are mobile and not undergoing procedures to wear their own clothes, or offer tops and trousers instead. Policies differ and depend on clinical and infection-control considerations, so decisions sit with each facility. A separate article in this series discusses when patients can wear their own clothes.
The staff side of the experience
Gowns also affect nurses. A gown that is difficult to put on a patient with limited mobility, has ties that knot in the laundry or comes in the wrong sizes adds work at every change. When staff find gowns easy to use, they are more likely to change them promptly and less likely to improvise, both of which benefit patients.
Checklist for a patient-centred gown review
- Do current gowns stay closed when patients walk and sit?
- Is there a size available for every patient, including larger and paediatric patients?
- Are sleeve length and fabric right for the temperature on each ward?
- Do patients have a modest option when they need one?
- Can patients fasten the gown themselves?
- Are worn and stained gowns retired promptly?
- Have patients and nurses been asked recently?
Making the change
Improving patient gowns rarely needs a large budget. It usually means choosing a better design, a sensible size range and fabric that stays presentable through laundering, then retiring gowns when they no longer meet that standard. MISHAREN makes reusable patient gowns to order, including back-opening, wrap-around and shoulder-opening styles, patient tops and trousers, short and long sleeves, and colours by ward, with a sample for approval before bulk production. Explore the options on the patient gowns page or ask for a quotation through contact.