Year: 2026 | Month: February | Volume: 13 | Issue: 2 | Pages: 311-320
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijrr.20260230
The Relationship between the Original Hippocratic Oath and the Current Physician's Oath and Ethical and Professional Values from a Medical Education Perspective
Hayriye Dilek Akdoğan1, Ali Çağlar Turgut2,3, Ilgaz Akdoğan4
1Department of Medical Education, İzmir Bakırçay University Faculty of Medicine, İzmir, Türkiye.
2Department of Histology and Embryology, Aydın Adnan Menderes University Health Sciences Institute, Aydin, Türkiye.
3Department of Radiology, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, İzmir, Türkiye.
4Department of Anatomy, Aydın Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine, Efeler, Aydin, Türkiye.
Corresponding Author: Ilgaz Akdoğan, M.D., Ph.D.
ABSTRACT
One of the most important components of medical education is attitude education, where a central element of attitude education is the teaching of medical ethics and professional values. An educational approache used for this purpose is the examination of the Hippocratic (Historical) Oath and the Current Physician’s Oath (the Declaration of Geneva, 1948). The aim of this study is to analyze the Original Hippocratic Oath and the Current Physician’s Oath in terms of their thematic content and to demonstrate their relationship with medical ethical principles and professional values. A literature review was conducted to identify the ethical principles and core professional values in medicine. Ethical principles were addressed beyond the traditional four-principle framework, adopting a more comprehensive ethical perspective. With respect to professional values, the analysis considered humanistic values commonly emphasized in both European and U.S. medical curricula. Subsequently, the Hippocratic Oath and the Current Physician’s Oath were examined to determine which ethical principles and professional values they reflect. The findings indicate that both the original and current oath texts are closely associated with numerous medical ethical principles and professional values and continue to maintain their relevance in modern medicine. Therefore, a detailed examination of both texts and their association with ethical and professional values should constitute a core component of attitude education throughout medical education. We believe that embracing and upholding the ethical and professional values articulated in these oath texts is essential for all physicians throughout their professional lives.
Keywords: Hippocratic Oath, Physician’s Oath, Geneva Declaration, Ethical Principles, Professional Values, Medical Education.
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