Abstract
Aims and MethodTo establish whether psychiatrists believe that medicine should be practised according to the principles of the Hippocratic Oath, an anonymised postal questionnaire survey was conducted of all medical staff at the Caludon Centre, an 80-bed in-patient mental health unit in Coventry.ResultsThirty-three respondents (82.5%) believed that medicine should be practised according to the Oath. Support for the 15 separate statements derived from the Oath varied considerably.Clinical ImplicationsThe principles of the Oath remain an important guide to the ethical basis of medical practice for most medical staff surveyed.
Highlights
Written in the 5th century BC, the Hippocratic Oath has been described as the first serious attempt to bring together philosophy, ethics and therapy in an integrated system of medical practice (Zilboorg & Henry, 1941)
Hippocratic ethics influence many contemporary medical oaths and ethicists (Roddy & Jones, 2002), but it is seen as an inspirational statement of the ethos of medicine by some, the relevance of the Hippocratic Oath to modern clinical practice continues to be questioned (Loefler, 2002)
About psychiatrists’ attitudes to the Hippocratic Oath and whether they consider it still possible to practise medicine according to the Oath
Summary
To establish whether psychiatrists believe that medicine should be practised according to the principles of the Hippocratic Oath, an anonymised postal questionnaire survey was conducted of all medical staff at the Caludon Centre, an 80-bed inpatient mental health unit in Coventry
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