Hippocratic Oath

The Hippocratic Oath is an oath that doctors often take to follow important rules for helping people. It comes from ancient Greece and is one of the oldest writings about how doctors should behave.

When doctors say this oath, they promise to work hard to help patients and to keep their information private.

This oath talks about treating people with care and not doing anything that could hurt them. Even today, many doctors think about these ideas when they start their work. The Hippocratic Oath is important because it helps remind everyone that doctors should always try to do what is best for those who are sick.

Text of the oath

The original Hippocratic Oath was written in Ancient Greek a long time ago. It is often connected to the doctor Hippocrates, but many think he did not write it himself. The oldest known copy is from a later time and is kept in the Vatican Library.

The oath has promises to respect teachers, share knowledge with certain students, help patients, and keep private information safe. It also says that doctors will not give harmful substances or do certain procedures.

I swear by Apollo Healer, by Asclepius, by Hygieia, by Panacea, and by all the gods and goddesses, that I will do my best to keep this promise.

I will treat my teacher like a parent, share what I know with those who need it, and teach this knowledge to my own children, my teacher’s children, and others who have promised to follow the same rules.

I will help my patients as best I can and will not harm them. I will not give a poison to anyone if they ask for it, and I will not help end a pregnancy. I will keep my life and work honest and clean.

I will not do surgeries, especially for removing stone, but I will let others who are trained do these.

Wherever I go, I will help people who are sick. I will not do anything wrong or harmful, and I will keep private things I see or hear to myself.

If I keep this promise, may I be respected. But if I break it, may I lose respect.

— Translation by W.H.S. Jones

Context and interpretation

The Hippocratic Oath is a very old set of rules for doctors. It is part of a group of medical writings called the Hippocratic Corpus. Most people believe Hippocrates did not write it himself, but it was written long ago.

The oath talks about good behavior for doctors. It says doctors should keep medical secrets safe and treat patients with respect.

The oath also has some rules that are different from other old medical writings. For example, it says doctors should not use knives for certain procedures. It also says doctors should not help people end their own lives or give medicines that could cause harm.

The oath uses ideas about religion and promises to keep medicine "pure and holy." This is different from other old writings about doctor ethics, which focus more on being practical and effective. Even so, the Hippocratic Oath is still important to doctors today, and many doctors still use a version of it.

Main article: Primum non nocere

Modern versions and relevance

The Hippocratic Oath has been replaced by newer rules for doctors. In 1803, Thomas Percival made one of the first modern codes of medical ethics. Later, groups like the American Medical Association and the British General Medical Council made their own guides for doctors. These guides explain what doctors should and should not do.

In 1948, the World Medical Association made a new oath called the Declaration of Geneva. In 1964, Louis Lasagna made a modern version of the Hippocratic Oath that focused on respecting human life. Many medical schools still use this version today. Today, most medical schools have their own versions of oaths for new doctors. There are no direct punishments for breaking the Hippocratic Oath, but doctors can face consequences for harmful actions under other laws.