logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2015
15m 59s

13 - The Oath

Adam Rodman, MD, MPH, FACP
About this episode

Doctors recite an oath, often the Hippocratic Oath, when they graduate medical school, swearing to serve their patients and to do no harm. The common perception is that physicians have sworn an oath for thousands of years, leading back to Hippocrates. But the origins are far more modern and buried in the greatest atrocity of the twentieth century. Learn more in Episode 13 of Bedside Rounds!

Up next
Sep 2023
74 - R2D2
What does it mean when a computer can make better medical decisions than a human? The progress in large language models, and in particular the popularity of ChatGPT, has brought these questions to the forefront in 2023, but we've been discussing this for over 50 years. In this ep ... Show More
33m 22s
Jun 2023
73 - Seadragon
What happens when a patient far from surgical care – say, at the bottom of the Pacific ocean on a submarine, or at a research base in Antarctica in the middle of the winter – develops a surgical abdomen? This dilemma was the impetus to build the first truly effective clinical dec ... Show More
27m 57s
Mar 2023
72 - Problems
American doctors spend the majority of their time during the day on the computer, either writing or reading notes about their patients; only a small fraction is spent with the human beings in their care. Technology itself – especially the electronic medical record – has often bee ... Show More
52m 3s
Recommended Episodes
May 2023
The Cult of Medical School
The Hippocratic Oath says do no harm. Explain elitism, secret societies, and debilitating physical and mental exhaustion to the point of potentially harming both doctor and patient, then?? Such is the "cult" of med school, this week's in-demand topic, which Amanda and Isa are dis ... Show More
41m 3s
Aug 2022
Three physicians discuss the history of experimentation and medical abuse and implications for today
In this episode, AMA Medical Student Section member and co-chair to the Minority Issues Committee, Joshua Carrasco, leads a panel of physicians through discussion on the history of racism, experimentation, and malpractice in medicine, as well as the long term implications of thes ... Show More
25m 4s
Nov 2022
It's impossible to have healthy people on a sick planet | Shweta Narayan
This week on TED Health, we are revisiting an episode focused on the Hippocratic Oath. It states: "first, do no harm" and is one of the world's oldest codes of ethics. It governs the work of physicians -- but climate and health campaigner Shweta Narayan says it should go further. ... Show More
8m 51s
Sep 2022
Professionalism
Dr. Centor discusses the definition of professionalism in medicine with medical students Rachel Mintz and Leah Pierson. 
23m 38s
Oct 2024
Halloween Scaries
In this episode, we will dive into the chilling world of historical medical treatments. From Belladonna eye drops used to dilate pupils to mercury being used to remove reckles or skin blemishes. These treatments, while now unimaginable, were once believed to be benificial. Join D ... Show More
7m 49s
Mar 2023
(Rerelease) SOC109 – Illness & Morality: A Look at Medical Sociology
Is health a privilege or a right? As a society, how do we come to understand health and its social origins and outcomes? Though medicine has been understood as a social science that dates back to Hippocrates–the Hippocratic Oath–medical sociology is not even 70 years old yet! The ... Show More
50m 19s
Jul 2022
Podcast 296: A roundtable on the question, Why are young internists flocking to the hospitalist practice style?
<p>A VIDEO RECORDING OF THIS ROUNDTABLE IS AVAILABLE <a href='https://cdn.jwplayer.com/players/zA1RaR3G-rmTFgmxB.html'>CLICK HERE</a>.</p> <p>THE USUAL AUDIO FILE IS AVAILABLE BELOW</p> <p>Your host is old enough to remember when hospital corridors featured physicians with littl ... Show More
29m 38s
Dec 2022
Modern Medicine
<p>The American Civil War saw a transformation in medical provision on the battlefield. A loose grouping of medical practitioners was reshaped into a burgeoning, professionalised occupation. How did the medical profession rise to the challenge of treating thousands of wounded sol ... Show More
34m 4s
Dec 2021
TED Climate: It's impossible to have healthy people on a sick planet | Shweta Narayan
The doctrine of "first, do no harm" is the basis of the Hippocratic Oath, one of the world's oldest codes of ethics. It governs the work of physicians -- but climate and health campaigner Shweta Narayan says it should go further. In this essential talk, she highlights the interde ... Show More
9m 20s
Nov 2021
A Doctor a Day Keeps the Apples Away
Physician heal thyself. Why most doctors don’t know more about how to prevent the number one cause of death in the U.S. today. This episode features audio from How Much Do Doctors Actually Know About Nutrition?, Why Prevention Is Worth a Ton of Cure, and How Doctors Responded to ... Show More
16m 38s