Peconic Bay Chief of Surgery Wears Pink Scrubs for Breast Cancer

Dr. Steven Ouzounian has heard just about every joke in the book since he started wearing hot pink scrubs around  this month. But Ouzounian, the Chief of Surgery at Peconic Bay Medical Center, said his embarassment is for a good cause: breast cancer awareness.

"If I'm going to wear pink, and this is very pink, for a month, I wanted to make some money for breast cancer awareness," he said.

Ouzounian and his physician assistant Michael Longo, who have an office in Hampton Bays, are wearing pink scrubs during October to raise funds for breast cancer research and organizations that help patients and their families. The doctors are accepting sponsorships for their one-month fashion statement and said they have raised over $1500 so far. The money will be split between two organizations, the North Fork Breast Health Coalition and the Pegasus House at PBMC.

Ouzounian, who wrote his college thesis on breast cancer, said breast cancer is a serious issue that deserves attention, especially on Long Island, which is considered a "hot-spot" for breast cancer cases.

Ouzounian said the one in 11 women nationally will be diagnosed with breast cancer; on Long Island, the rate is one in every nine women.

He originally hoped to get the whole hospital to dress up in pink scrubs, but ran out of time to organize the fundraiser.

"Even though the whole hospital isn't doing this, we needed to do this," Ouzounian said. Since starting the fundraiser, staff and patients around the hospital have stopped Ouzounian and asked how they can help. 

Ouzounian has also hung posters around the hospital with slogans advertising his fundraiser like "I'm man enough to wear pink. Are you man enough to support breast cancer?"

"Half the staff has come up to me and wanted to do it," he said. He hopes that by next year, the whole hospital will take part in the fundraiser.

Ouzonian said he had only one regret about the idea.

"To be honest, I wish I had thought of it earlier," he said.