By William E. Morgan, D.C.

One of the quickest ways to experience burnout in chiropractic is to forget why you became a chiropractor: To ease the suffering of others . Unless a chiropractor or any physician is actively pursing this goal, his or her life will become unbalanced and joyless. Serving in the healing arts is more than a mere profession; it is akin to a sacrosanct trust. We can trace this trust to the time of the Greek physician Hippocrates.

Prior to Hippocrates, physicians were not bound by a code of conduct. In the pre-Hippocratic world, physicians could take advantage of their patients, deny care based on patients' status or station, inflict harm on patients, or even perform euthanasia. The Hippocratic Oath defined a specific code of conduct that protected and honored the doctor-patient relationship. At the time of its inception this oath was revolutionary.

Soon after the creation of the oath, patients in the ancient world sought Hippocratic physicians. The marketplace eventually drove virtually all western physicians to take the Hippocratic Oath or change professions. These ancient patients liked the idea of having principled physicians who committed themselves to the service of others. Even today, patients like to think of their doctors as belonging to a sacred order dedicated to a higher calling.

Several of the writings attributed to Hippocrates make him sound more like the father of chiropractic than the father of modern medicine:

• "Look well to the spine for the cause of disease."
  
• "Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food."
  
• "[I]f from the displacement of a vertebra it were to be bent even to a small extent; for the displaced vertebra would compress the spinal marrow."

Many chiropractors like to pay homage to the chiropractor-like writings of Hippocrates. I like to acknowledge the "spirit" of Hippocrates. (I use the word spirit instead of person since many historians now believe that the work attributed to Hippocrates is actually the work of several physicians who shared a kindred spirit.)

Seeking Kindred Spirits

When partnering with other providers-be it in an integrated setting or with fellow chiropractors-seek fellowship with those who honor the principles of upholding the doctor-patient relationship and protecting patient dignity. (Your commitment does not need to be to the historic Hippocratic Oath. In fact, I find the Chiropractic Oath that I took at Palmer to be an improvement on it.) I would rather practice alongside a chiropractor who has a different philosophy than me but who possesses integrity and seeks only the best for his patients, instead of one who has similar beliefs but who is unethical and cares little for his patients.

A multi-specialty clinic functions better if its providers agree to a code of conduct. This code should always be based on what is best for patients. Even if fundamental disagreements arise, the code will stand as a testament to the mission of all in the clinic. Certainly, almost everyone in health care can agree to principles such as "Primum non nocere" ("First, do no harm"), a cornerstone of Hippocratic practice. If a clinic were to truly abide by this adage, its providers would be bound to try more conservative options before using the more dangerous treatments of drugs, injections and surgery. Therefore, an integrated clinic that strives to "do no harm" should offer chiropractic as the entry-level treatment. More dangerous treatments should be attempted only if chiropractic fails.

The memory of Hippocrates can remind us that being a chiropractor is a calling . We should use his memory to reaffirm our respect for human dignity and remind ourselves that our duty is to minister to our patients-not ourselves, the government or managed care.

To learn more, read Hippocrates on Ethical Practice Management by visiting the 2004 volume of the Journal of Chiropractic Humanities online.