JUNE 25 — The sprawling Sungai Buloh Hospital sees crowds of people daily, whether they are patients or visitors.

Over the years, the establishment has grown and is growing further, with the usual package of problems plaguing most government hospitals.

The persistent problems include lack of parking space and time spent waiting your turn whether at the pharmacy or to see a doctor.

Mum has been a patient here for the past few years, and now my eldest sister. Most times they have been admitted due to illnesses.

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One of the more heart thumping moments was whisking mum in the early hours of the morning in an ambulance to the hospital.

We scrambled in the pouring rain with only one thought in our minds — to get her the treatment that she immediately needed.

I didn’t think of what clothes I would wear. I just grabbed a T-shirt and short black denim skirt that was lying on my bed and shot out the door.

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My second sister, dad and I remained in the designated semi-critical area of the emergency department while doctors made mum comfortable and started treating her.

True to form, a hospital guard shooed us away after a while. She said only one person could stay. I decided it would be me as dad and sis were already tired.

So, stay I did. Along with family members of other patients.

We were a motley crew that night, our attire was obviously the last thing on our minds.

There were people clad in shorts, sleeveless tops, baju kurung and slippers.

When news broke out about a visitor being barred from entering Sungai Buloh Hospital because she was wearing a pair of shorts, one of the first things I thought to myself was, “Eh? But no one made a big deal of my black skirt.”

I have worn that black skirt to that particular hospital many times over along with my faithful pair of comfortable flip flops. Also to Putrajaya Hospital where I am a patient.

Not once was I denied entry. During all those trips to these hospitals, it was not uncommon to see people in clothes or footwear which didn’t fit the “dress code” poster which stands near the visitor entry point.

However, on several occasions I have ended up cursing myself for not bringing a shawl along.

Not because I feared being barred from entering, but certain areas in these hospitals can be freezing and an extra layer of protection is an advantage.

What Nisha Daddygal wore that day when she was stopped by the guard hardly warranted being barred.

Hospital director Dr Khalid Ibrahim said miscommunication had led to the incident and an apology had been issued.  

Dress codes in the past have created yet another storm in the country and once again race and religion seem to have played a major part.

The fact is that dressing has for eons played a pivotal role in what people think of you.

How many times have you stepped into a store and not been given a second look by staff just because your dressing placed you in the category of “sure won’t buy anything?”

Step into that store again dressed differently, and you will probably get better service. (Note: I dress down and shop as only then will I know if the staff members at the outlet are genuine. Those who are nice will have me as a repeat customer.)

Does anyone remember the scene from Pretty Woman where Julia Roberts’ character was turned away when dressed in stereotypical sex worker getup, yet the same staff at the shop fell over themselves to serve her when she came dressed to the nines?

The point is, do we really need to blame race and religion again? To look at each other with suspicion and feed the ugly monster called racism?

Case in point, a friend of mine was told off for walking around the office in her spaghetti strap top because some colleagues had taken offence and brought the issue up with the human resources department.

It wasn’t a Malay/Muslim majority establishment, but the women felt it was inappropriate and chose to head to HR instead of approaching her privately.

My friend had an explanation. While the office was freezing cold due to the air conditioning, she didn’t feel it because of a medical condition where she perspired profusely. Her intention was not to flaunt, it was simply because she felt hot.

Another friend, who just that one time wore a skirt a couple of inches above the knee, was duly told off for it.

Trust me, both incidents left them second guessing themselves for some time.

They would look at their clothes before dressing for work and think, “will anyone make an issue today if I wear this?”

There will always be those who deign themselves as the moral fashion police among us because of different norms and environment which we are brought up in.

And once again, whether we let them cut into the fabric of our society is up to us. There should be no us or them. But simply all of us.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or organisation and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail Online.