Hippocrates: The Oath of Medicine You do solemnly swear, each by whatever he or she holds most sacred That you will be loyal to the Profession of Medicine and Just and generous to its members That you will lead your lives and practice your art in uprightness and honor Xinjiang Medical University Sixth Affiliated Hospital Department of Traumatology and Orthopedics Ren Zheng That into whatsoever house you shall enter, it shall be for the good of the sick to the utmost of your power, your holding yourselves far aloof from wrong, from corruption, from The tempting of others to vice That you will exercise your art solely for the cure of your patients, and will give no drug, perform no operation, for a criminal purpose, even if solicited, far less suggest it That whatsoever you shall see or hear of the lives of men or women which is not fitting to be spoken, Let each bow the head in sign of acquiescence And now, if you will be true to this, your oath, may And now, if you will be true to this, your oath, may be ever yours; the opposite, if you shall prove yourselves forsworn. In reliance on Apollo, the god of healers, Eschrepius, and the gods of heaven and earth as witnesses, I respectfully swear to keep this covenant to the best of my ability and judgment. I will honor the parents of those who have taught me the art, and I will be their lifelong companion, and I will provide for them in their urgent needs. I will treat their children as my brothers, and if I wish to teach them, I will do so freely and unconditionally. All who know much, whether by word of mouth or by book, shall be transmitted to my son, to my master’s children, and to his pupils who have sworn to keep this covenant, and to no one else. I wish to observe, to the best of my ability and judgment, the creed for the benefit of the sick, and to restrain myself from all depravity and harm, and I shall not give harmful drugs to others, nor give instruction in this regard, nor shall I give them to others, although they ask me to do so, especially not to perform abortions on women. I wish to perform my duties in this pure and holy spirit for the rest of my life. I will not operate on anyone suffering from stones, but this is to be done with a specialist. Wherever I go, male or female, noble or slave, my only purpose is to make my family happy, and to keep my body in check, not to commit any kind of harm or bad behavior, especially not to commit adultery. I will keep secret all that I see and hear, whether or not I have business relations, and which I think should be kept secret. If I keep the above vows, I ask God to let my life and my healing be glorious, and if I break them, I shall be put to death by heaven and earth and by the gods. Note: Hippocrates (c. 460-377 B.C.) was an ancient Greek physician and the founder of Western medicine. The famous “Hippocratic Oath” is a motto that Western doctors must abide by. To this day, many graduates of medical schools take the oath of office with this oath.