August 22, 2012

"…These things I do swear or affirm." With those final words of the Hippocratic Oath, Drexel University College of Medicine welcomed 260 new medical students during the annual White Coat Ceremony on August 10. This wonderful tradition is celebrated by medical schools across the country and is an important first step for these future physicians as they receive the traditional symbol of clinical care and service: the white coat. Like our Facebook page to see a photo album of the event.

Swearing the Oath at the beginning of their education in the presence of family, significant others, friends, faculty, board members, administrators and alumni makes the students more aware of their responsibility from the very first day of their training, not just to "take care" of their patients but to "care" for them. The Oath is a promise to practice medicine ethically.

Each of the bright and enthusiastic men and women donned their new white coats in a ballroom filled to capacity with loved ones cheering. The first White Coat Ceremony took place in 1993 at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. The concept has spread to encompass 90 percent of medical schools nationwide. It was designed to produce a new generation of physicians with a renewed focus on compassion.

The new medical students were welcomed by Barbara A. Schindler, MD, vice dean for Educational and Academic Affairs; Daniel V. Schidlow, MD, Annenberg Dean and SVP of Medical Affairs; and Loretta P. Finnegan, MD, president of the Alumni Association. The event's keynote speaker was Michael Weingarten, MD, MPH, professor in the Department of Surgery.