Medical Ethics - the Hippocratic Oath
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Hippocrates wrote this in 400 BC. Many of our patients think that we all have to swear by the oath and abide by it.
Which parts of the oath are still valid today?
| I SWEAR by Apollo the physician, and Aesculapius,
and Health, and All-heal, and all the gods and goddesses, that, according to
my ability and judgment, I will keep this Oath and this stipulation- to
reckon him who taught me this Art equally dear to me as my parents, to share
my substance with him, and relieve his necessities if required; to look upon
his offspring in the same footing as my own brothers, and to teach them this
art, if they shall wish to learn it, without fee or stipulation.
By precept, lecture, and every other mode of instruction, I will impart a knowledge of the Art to my own sons, and those of my teachers, and to disciples bound by a stipulation and oath according to the law of medicine, but to none others. I will follow that system of regimen which, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of my patients, and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous. I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel; and in like manner I will not give to a woman a pessary to produce abortion. With purity and with holiness I will pass my life and practice my Art. I will not cut persons labouring under the stone, but will leave this to be done by men who are practitioners of this work. Into whatever houses I enter, I will go into them for the benefit of the sick, and will abstain from every voluntary act of mischief and corruption; and, further from the seduction of females or males, of freemen and slaves. Whatever, in connection with my professional practice or not, in connection with it, I see or hear, in the life of men, which ought not to be spoken of abroad, I will not divulge, as reckoning that all such should be kept secret. While I continue to keep this Oath unviolated, may it be granted to me to enjoy life and the practice of the art, respected by all men, in all times! But should I trespass and violate this Oath, may the reverse be my lot! Translated by: Francis Adams |
The Hippocratic Oath was probably written in the fifth century BC and was intended to be affirmed by each doctor on entry to the medical profession. The Hippocratic Oath and its successors, such as the World Medical Association's Declaration of Geneva, have expressed a fundamental medical duty to pursue patients' best medical interests, to avoid harming or exploiting them, and to maintain their confidences.
Today, the Hippocratic Oath is not generally sworn by medical students upon qualification, since the language of the Oath has become outmoded.
However, about half of all UK medical schools administer an oath of some
kind, either at the beginning of a student's medical studies or upon graduation,
in order to formally acknowledge his or her commitment to medicine. Texts vary.
Some use an updated version of the Hippocratic Oath, while others use the World
Medical Association's
Declaration of Geneva. Other medical graduates use an
oath formulated by the medical school itself.
Although views differ about the value of making some form
of oath, the BMA supports the practice of health professionals making a
formal commitment to upholding ethical standards of conduct at the start of
their careers.
Source: www.bma.org
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Written by: Michael Harris
Last updated: 16 September 2006