I The Good Doctor Oaths, Quotes and Prayers for Physicians

THEGOOD DOCTOR

Oaths, Quotes, and Prayers for Physicians

"I want to be a doctor so that I canheal people and serve humanity..." Sounds familiar? For most of us, thosesincere words represent the noble purpose of medicine which first attracted usto the field. However, more often than not, as the years pass by, such wordslose its meaning as the stressful years of medical school and residency take its toll in theminds of the idealistic young doctors. The daily drudgery of our lives spentstudying for the tons of exams, the USMLE, the sleepless nights on-call takingcare of a never-ending list of critical patients , leave us tired, embittered,and disenchanted.

This page was created in an effort toremind my fellow physicians of what medicine is all about --- its noble role tosociety and to mankind. The message in these pages was meant to give youstrength during the trying times of our career when we tend to forget about theessence of our chosen profession.

The oaths, quotes, and prayers in thispage were selected to guide you in your daily work as THE GOOD DOCTOR.

May all of us always strive to preservethe soul of medicine...

OATHS

The Hippocratic Oath

The Declaration of Geneva

QUOTES

PRAYERS

Daily Prayer of a Physician

Prayer to Protect Life

Prayer for the Sick

Prayer for the Dead

LINKS

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O A T H S

Thesetimeless oaths embody a lot of the rules of medical ethics. From patientconfidentiality to the doctrine of primum non nocere, physicians for centurieshave looked upon these oaths to guide their daily practice of medicine. Thereare several variations usedby the different medical schools all over the world but the spirit of thesewords remain the same.

The Hippocratic Oath

(Fifth century, B.C.)

I swear by Apollo the physician, byAesculapius, and Health, and All-heal, and all the gods and goddesses, thataccording to my ability and my judgment, I will keep this Oath and thisstipulation--to reckon him who taught me this Art equally dear to me as myparents, to share my substance with him, and relieve his necessities ifrequired; to look upon his offspring in the same footing as my own brothers,and to teach them this Art, if they wish to learn it, without fee orstipulation; and that by precept, lecture, and every mode of instruction, Iwill impart a knowledge of the Art to my own sons, and of my teachers, and todisciples bound by a stipulation and oath according to the law of medicine, butto none others.

I will follow that system or regimenwhich, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of mypatients, and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous.

I will give no deadly medicine to any oneif asked, nor suggest any such counsel; and in like manner I will not give to awoman a pessary to produce abortion.

With purity and with holiness I will passmy 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. Intowhatever houses I enter, I will go into them for the benefit of the sick, andwill 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 myprofessional service, or not in connection with it, I see or hear, in the lifeof men, which ought not to be spoken of abroad, I will not divulge, as reckoningthat all such should be kept secret.

While I continue to keep this Oathunviolated, 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 thisOath, may the reverse be my lot.

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TheDeclaration of Geneva

(Writtenin 1948 and amended to the current form in 1983 by the World MedicalAssociation.)

Isolemnly pledge myself to consecrate my life to the service of humanity;

I willgive to my teachers the respect and gratitude which is their due;

I willpractice my profession with conscience and dignity;

Thehealth of my patient will be my first consideration;

I willrespect the secrets which are confided in me, even after the patient has died;

I willmaintain by all means in my power the honor and the noble traditions of themedical profession;

Mycolleagues will be my brothers;

I willnot permit considerations of religion, nationality, race, party politics orsocial standing to intervene between my duty and my patient;

I willmaintain the utmost respect for human life from its beginning even under threatand I will not use my medical knowledge contrary to the laws of humanity;

I makethese promises solemnly, freely, and upon my honor.

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Q U O T E S

Doctorshave always been fond of referring to each other for opinions -- medical orotherwise. It is in this light that I included these quotes so that you can"refer" to these other people and gather their words of wisdom.

"One of the essential qualities of the clinician is interest in humanity, forthe secret of the care of the patient is in caring for the patient."

- Frances Weld Peabodyin "The Care of the Patient"

"Beinga good doctor means being incredibly compulsive. It has nothing to do withflights of intuition or brilliant diagnoses or even saving lives. It's dealingwith a lot of people with chronic diseases that you really can't change orimprove. You can help patients. You can make a difference in their lives, butyou do that mostly by drudgery--day after day paying attention to details,seeing patient after patient and complaint after complaint, and beingresponsive on the phone when you don't feel like being responsive."

-from"M.D.-Doctors Talk About Themselves" by John Pekkanen

"Surgeons must be very careful

When they take the knife!

Underneath their fine incisions

Stirs the Culprit---Life!"

-EmilyDickinson

"It'sthe humdrum, day-in, day-out, everyday work that is the real satisfaction ofthe practice of medicine; the million and a half patients a man has seen on hisdaily visits over a forty-year period of weekdays and Sundays that make up hislife. I have never had a money practice; it would have been impossible for me.But the actual calling on people, at all times and under all conditions, thecoming to grips with the intimate conditions of their lives, when they were beingborn, when they were dying, watching them die, watching them get well when theywere ill, has always absorbed me."

-William CarlosWilliams in "The Practice"

"Allof us who attempt to heal the wounds of others will ourselves be wounded; itis, after all, inherent in the relationship."

-from "Healingthe Wounds" by David Hilfiker, M.D.

"Tobe a doctor, then, means much more than to dispense pills or to patch up or repairtorn flesh and shattered minds. To be a doctor is to be an intermediary betweenman and God."

-from "To Be aDoctor " by Felix Marti-Ibanez

"Thisrush toward what some have termed the 'commercialization' of medicine andothers have called the 'industrialization' of medicine has bewilderedphysicians, perhaps because we have instinctively sensed that although therehave always been some business aspects to medical practice, medicine, in themost fundamental sense, is not a business."

-from "The MedicalPractice in the Competitive Market" in the New England Journal ofMedicine, 2/5/87

"Youcan't know it all. And even if you knew everything that anyone else knows(which you can't, so stop worrying about it), you still wouldn't know what youneed to know to help many patients."

-from "A NotEntirely Benign Procedure" by Perri Klass

"Doctorsare only people. They're not saints whose word is the final and absolute end.Their knowledge is often tentative, their understanding empiric and imperfect,and their motivations frequently mixed...Doctors who didn't understand theywere only human were less likely to admit they made mistakes or that theirpatients could sometimes be right and they could sometimes be wrong."

-from "The Makingof a Psychiatrist" by David Viscott, M.D.

"Frominability to let alone; from too much zeal for the new and contempt for what isold; from putting knowledge before wisdom, and science before art, andcleverness before common sense; from treating patients as cases; and frommaking cure of the disease more grievous than the endurance of the same, GoodLord, deliver us."

-Sir Robert Hutchinson

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P R A Y E R S

Forphysicians who believe in God, prayers have always been a source of comfort.These prayers were selectedto help you deal with the times when you are amidst death and sorrow.

Daily Prayer of a Physician

("Prayerof Maimonides" attributed to Moses Maimonides, a twelfth-century Jewishphysician in Egypt, but probably written by Marcus Herz, a German physician.First appeared in print in 1793. Translated by Harry Friedenwald in theBulletin of the Johns Hopkins Hospital, 1917)

AlmightyGod, Thou has created the human body with infinite wisdom. Ten thousand timesten thousand organs hast Thou combined in it that act unceasingly andharmoniously to preserve the whole in all its beauty the body which is theenvelope of the immortal soul. They are ever acting in perfect order, agreementand accord. Yet, when the frailty of matter or the unbridling of passionsderanges this order or interrupts this accord, then forces clash and the bodycrumbles into the primal dust from which it came.

Thousendest to man diseases as beneficient messengers to foretell approachingdanger and to urge him to avert it. Thou hast blest Thine earth, Thy rivers andThy mountains with healing substances; they enable Thy creatures to alleviatetheir sufferings and to heal their illnesses. Thou hast endowed man with thewisdom to relieve the suffering of his brother, to recognize his disorders, toextract the healing substances, to discover their powers and to prepare and toapply them to suit every ill.

In ThineEternal Providence Thou hast chosen me to watch over the life and health of Thycreatures. I am now about to apply myself to the duties of my profession.Support me, Almighty God, in these great labors that they may benefit mankind,for without Thy help not even the least thing will succeed. Inspire me withlove for my art and for Thy creatures. Do not allow thirst for profit, ambitionfor renown and admiration, to interfere with my profession, for these are theenemies of truth and of love for mankind and they can lead astray in the greattask of attending to the welfare of Thy creatures.

Preservethe strength of my body and of my soul that they ever be ready to cheerfullyhelp and support rich and poor, good and bad, enemy as well as friend. In thesufferer let me see only the human being. Illumine my mind that it recognizewhat presents itself and that it may comprehend what is absent or hidden. Letit not fail to see what is visible, but do not permit it to arrogate itself thepower to see what cannot be seen, for delicate and indefinite are the bounds ofthe great art of caring for the lives and health of Thy creatures. Let me neverbe absent-minded. May no strange thoughts divert my attention at the bedside ofthe sick, or disturb my mind in its silent labors, for great and sacred are thethoughtful deliberations required to preserve the lives and health of Thycreatures

Grantthat my patients have confidence in me and my art and follow my directions andcounsel. Remove from their midst all charlatans and the whole host of officiousrelatives and know-all nurses, cruel people who arrogantly frustrate the wisestpurposes of our art and often lead Thy creatures to their death.

Shouldthose who are wiser than I wish to improve and instruct me, let my soulgratefully follow their guidance; for vast is the extent of our art. Shouldconceited fools, however, censure me, then let love for my profession steel meagainst them, so that I remain steadfast without regard for age, forreputation, or for honor, because surrender would bring Thy creatures sicknessand death.

Imbue mysoul with gentleness and calmness when older colleagues, proud of their age,wish to displace me or scorn me or disdainfully teach me. May even this be ofadvantage to me, for they know many things of which I am ignorant, but let nottheir arrogance give me pain. For they are old and old age is not master of thepassions. I also hope to attain old age upon this earth, before Thee, AlmightyGod!

Let me becontented in everything except in the great science of my profession. Neverallow the thought to arise in me that I have attained to sufficient knowledge,but vouchsafe to me the strength, the leisure and the ambition ever to extendmy knowledge. For art is great, but the mind of man is ever expanding.

AlmightyGod! Thou hast chosen me in Thy mercy to watch over the life and death of Thycreatures. I now apply myself to my profession. Support me in this greaty taskso that it may benefit mankind, for without Thy help not even the least thingwill succeed.

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Prayerto Protect Life

LovingGod, I thank you for the gift of life you gave and continue to give to me andto all of us.

MercifulGod, I ask your pardon and forgiveness for my own failure and the failure ofall people to respect and foster all forms of life in our universe.

GraciousGod, I pray that with your grace, I and all people will reverence, protect, andpromote all life and that we will be especially sensitive to the life of theunborn, the abused, neglected, disabled, and the elderly. I pray, too, that allwho make decisions about life in any form will do so with wisdom, love, andcourage.

LivingGod, I praise and glorify you as Father, Source of all life, as Son, Savior ofour lives, and as Spirit, Sanctifier of our lives.

Amen.

Sister Mary Margaret Johanning, S.S.N.D.
Nihil Obstat: Joseph F. Martino
Imprimatur: Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua
Archbishop of Philadelphia, June 1994

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Prayerfor the Sick

Dear Lord,you bore our sufferings and carried our sorrows in order to show us clearly thevalue of human weakness and patience.

I now turnto you to ask you to heal the soul and body of _______(name)_______

I know, Lord,that sin tears away relationships between people and you. But there is noillness and no wound that you cannot heal.

Come andtouch _______(name)_______ where he/she is most wounded andafflicted.

I believein your healing power and I trust and hope that you will hear my request for mysick brother/sister.

If it isyour will, however, that _______(name)_______ should carry thiscross of illness then I humbly pray that you give him/her the strength andperseverance to bear his/her cross with love.

Grant thathe/she and all those who are now weighed down with pain and other afflictionsmay realize that they are among the chosen ones whom you call blessed.

Help themto understand that they are united with you in your sufferings for thesalvation of the world.

Amen.

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Prayerfor the Dead

Lord help us to see death for what it really is,
the end of poverty and the beginning of riches;
the end of frustration and the beginning of fulfillment;
the end of fear
and the beginning of tranquillity;
the end of pain and the beginning of joy;
the end of weakness
and the beginning of strength.

Let not grief overwhelm us, or a sense of loss embitter us.
But out of our sadness let there arise a new joy for so much given to us.
Cast out our fears and let not our hearts be troubled.
Let your spirit of peace come alive within our experience and hurt,
our sorrow and isolation,
our sadness today and loneliness tomorrow.

We humbly commend to you, _______(name of deceased)_______ whom you havecalled out of this mortal life.
You loved him/her always with great love.
Now that you have freed him/her from all evils of this earth, bring him/herinto your paradise where there is no more grief or mourning, or sadness but peaceand joy with your Son and the Holy Spirit forever.

We thank you for all the blessings you have given to _______(name ofdeceased)_______ in his/her mortal life.
We pray that he/she may be able to glorify you with the life that he/she livedand the way he/she made use of his/her blessings.

Lord God, grant that we will never forget that life is short and uncertain.
Let your spirit guide us in holiness, justice and service to our brothers andsisters.

We pray for the healing of all unhappy feelings _______(name ofdeceased)_______ 's death now leaves in our hearts.
Be with us, Lord, during our moments of sorrow and loneliness.
You are our rock, our fortress and our strength.
We trust in you and hope in your glorious resurrection.
We lift up to you our grief and sorrow confident that you will change ourmourning to rejoicing that our beloved _______(name ofdeceased)_______ now rests in your peace.

LEADER:

Eternal rest grant unto him/her, O Lord.

ALL:

And let your perpetual light shine upon him/her.

LEADER:

May he/she rest in peace.

ALL:

Amen.

LEADER:

May the soul of _______(name ofdeceased)_______ and the souls of all the faithful departed throughthe mercy of God rest in peace.

ALL:

Amen.