On Thursday evening, I took the following oath:
Today, in the presence of family, friends, teachers, and colleagues, I dedicate myself to the profession of Medicine.
I pledge myself to the service of humanity. I will use my skills to care for all in need, without bias and with openness of spirit. The health of my patients will be my first concern. I vow to hold sacred the bond between doctor and patient. I will hold in confidence all that my patients entrust to me. I will strive to alleviate suffering. I will respect the dignity and autonomy of my patients in living and dying.
As a Physician, I recognize my duty to society. I will work to promote health and prevent disease. I will advocate for the welfare of my community. Even under duress, I will not use my knowledge or my skills against humanity. I will acknowledge my limitations and my mistakes so that I may learn from them. To uphold these responsibilities, I will maintain my own well-being and the well-being of those close to me.
I will promote the integrity of the practice of Medicine. In the tradition of my profession, I honor all who teach me this Art. Through honest and respectful collaboration with my colleagues, I will seek new knowledge, reexamine ideas and practices of the past, and teach what I have learned.
Above all, the health of my patients will be my first concern.
This Oath I take freely and upon my honor.
Continue reading ‘The Contemporary Oath of Hippocrates’
I have an uncanny ability to sleep through lectures.
But it’s a trait that didn’t develop until medical school. Perhaps a cure for my lecture narcolepsy would have helped my GPA through the basic science years. Perhaps not.
But maybe I’m kidding myself. Maybe I slept through college classes too? I can’t seem to remember having that much difficulty staying awake in my “History of Baseball” course though, so I’ll assume for now that the change was induced by the rise in tuition.
For examaple, I think I never slept through high school classes. Those very virtually free. College cost a bit of money although scholarships covered just about every expense. I guess I dozed off in a few classes here or there–certainly more than high school. Sleeping through medical school lectures on the other hand was an almost daily affair. I had some tuition expenses covered by scholarship, but the majority of my funding came from loans (i.e. I’m paying for it, dammit).
Clearly there is an inverse relationship between the amount of time spent sleeping in class to the cost of said class.
Some would argue that such a tendency to doze through lectures is counter-productive to one’s education. On some levels that is true. But I take another view. You see, with the expenses of medical school comes extreme amounts of stress. Ya know–kinda like buying your first house. Every time you see a bill your pulse jumps to 120. At least with a house you build equity. The same can’t be said for an M.D.
But one of the best ways to cope with stress is proper rest. So by napping during pathology lectures I was doing my body a favor. I was avoiding burnout.
Makes sense, no?
This just in: Medical school is reaaaalllly expensive.
Think about that before you apply.
That is all.
I’m done. Finished. Through.
As Dr. Basch would say, “they can’t hurt me anymore”.
At least until July 1st.
Man, this feels good.
