Doctor Symbol ⚕: Copy, Meaning and Correct Medical Symbols

⚕ vs ☤: The Real Medical Symbol

Two staff-and-snake symbols look similar, but they come from different Greek myths and mean different things.

The caduceus symbol (two snakes and wings) became popular on medical signs in some countries by mistake, and you will still see it on hospital boards and apps. If you want the accurate symbol of medicine for your clinic or profile, use ⚕. The World Health Organization symbol also shows the single-snake rod of Asclepius over the UN emblem, which is a good reminder of which one is correct.

How to Use the Doctor Symbol on Name Plates and Visiting Cards

The ⚕ looks neat and professional next to a name. A few clean layouts:

• Name plate: ⚕ Dr. Anjali Mehta, MBBS, MD (Medicine)
• Visiting card: Dr. Rohan Desai ⚕ | Consultant Physician
• Prescription pad header: ⚕ City Care Clinic, Reg. No. on the next line
• WhatsApp or social DP text: Dr. Kavya ⚕ | Child Specialist

Tips that make it print well:

• Use the plain ⚕ (first in the grid) for print. The emoji style ⚕️ may show in colour on phones but can turn into a box in some printers.
• Keep the symbol the same height as the name, or slightly smaller.
• Set it in a dark colour (black, navy or deep green). A red doctor symbol is common on signboards, but avoid making it look like a red cross.
• For a doctor symbol dp or logo image, use Download PNG; the transparent background sits well on any colour.

The Red Cross Is Not a Hospital Symbol for Clinics

Many people think a red plus on white is the general hospital symbol. In fact, the red cross is a protected emblem under the Geneva Conventions. It is meant for the medical services of the armed forces and for the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement. In India, its use is controlled under the Geneva Conventions Act, 1960, so private hospitals, clinics, doctors, chemists and companies should not put a red cross on their boards, cards, logos or products.

Safer choices:

• ⚕ for doctors and clinics
• 🏥 or the word "Hospital" for hospital signs
• A green cross, which is widely used for pharmacies and medical shops
• ➕ in a non-red colour as a simple medical plus symbol in apps and notes

General information only, not legal advice.

Pharmacy Symbol and Rx Symbol ℞

The ℞ sign is the classic pharmacy symbol and pharmacist symbol. It comes from the Latin word recipe, meaning "take", and doctors write it at the start of a prescription. In India you will see ℞ printed on prescription pads and on medicine strips that are sold only on a doctor's prescription.

• Symbol of pharmacy on a shop board: a green cross, ℞, or 💊
• On a prescription: ℞ followed by the medicine list
• Pharmacist symbol emoji: 💊 or 🧑‍⚕️ style emoji on phones

Another old pharmacy symbol is the bowl of Hygieia (a snake drinking from a cup), but it has no Unicode character. To type ℞: in Word type 211E then Alt+X, or copy it from the grid.

First Aid, Nurse and Other Health Symbols

The green-and-white first aid sign follows the general safety colour rule, green for safe condition, explained on our warning and danger symbols hub. For biomedical waste and infection risk, the correct sign is ☣; see the biohazard symbol page.

How to Type the Doctor Symbol

⚕ has no standard Alt code, so use one of these:

• Microsoft Word: type 2695 and press Alt+X. The number turns into ⚕.
• Word, Excel, PowerPoint: Insert > Symbol > More Symbols. Set Font to Segoe UI Symbol, type 2695 in the Character code box, then click Insert.
• Windows 10 and 11: press Windows+. and search "medical" for the doctor symbol emoji ⚕️.
• Mac: press Control+Command+Space and search "medical".
• Google Docs: Insert > Special characters, search "aesculapius" or draw the snake shape.
• Android and iPhone: open emoji, search "medical" or "health" and pick ⚕️.
• HTML: ⚕ shows ⚕.

Other useful codes: ☤ is 2624, ℞ is 211E, 🩺 is 1FA7A (all followed by Alt+X in Word).

Dr Symbol, Doctorate and Medical Degrees

There is no separate symbol for a doctorate. In India, the title "Dr." is used by medical doctors and also by people with a PhD. The ⚕ is a symbol of medicine, so it suits MBBS, MD, BDS (dental doctor), AYUSH and other medical practitioners in their clinical work, but it does not suit a PhD in, say, history. There is also no single official "Indian medical symbol" or MBBS symbol that every doctor must use; ⚕ is simply the accepted international sign.

For other signs, see the recycle symbol page (useful for clinic waste posters) and our list of symbols and meanings.