White Coat Ceremony Reflection on the Hippocratic Oath

When I read the Hippocratic Oath at the White Coat Ceremony and read it back now, I realize that in reciting it, I am making vows I don’t completely understand. Most of the statements I recited do not hold much meaning for me at this point because I don’t fully understand them. Of course, I understand the overall intent of these vows, but I don’t know how they translate into actual practice. I can read them and imagine what they may mean for me as a future physician, but I honestly don’t have a clue what it really means to “not withdraw from my patients in their time of need” or to “be an advocate for patients.” I can think about being there for my patients in their darkest hours, providing care of the whole person, and aiding them in their healing process; but I don’t know what all this really entails because I have not yet had to live out these vows myself. I think that I cannot truly make this vow until I understand what it means practically. Upon embarking on my medical education, I have made a promise to work towards understanding the contents of this oath so I may live them out as a doctor in the future. The next four years will require me to reflect back on the attributes of a good physician contained in the oath in order to become a doctor who embodies these qualities. Right now, I view the contents of this oath as something that I will constantly be working towards throughout my training.

At Commencement, I know that this oath will have a much greater meaning to me because I will have learned to live it throughout my four years as a medical student. Only after learning through observation of other physicians and dealing with patients myself will I understand what is asked of me as I don the white coat. I know the environment at Stony Brook will help me understand exactly how to “serve the highest interests of my patients” in my everyday practice. The attributes of a physician in the Hippocratic Oath won’t be a goal I have for the physician I hope to be, but they will be characteristics I will embody as physician I will have become.