Hippocrates — "As to diseases, make a habit of two things — to help, or at least, to do no harm…"
As to diseases, make a habit of two things — to help, or at least, to do no harm.
Get This Quote & Author's Image Illustrated On:
Click any product to generate a realistic preview. Up to 3 at a time.
* Initial load can take up to 90 seconds — revising the preview in another color is nearly instant.
Kitchen
Apparel
Other
More from Hippocrates
"The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and a scented massage every day."
"Conclusions which are merely verbal cannot bear fruit, only those do which are based on demonstrated fact. For affirmation and talk are deceptive and treacherous. Wherefore one must hold fast to facts…"
"The love of wisdom is the mother of all good things."
"The most important organ is the brain."
"Extreme remedies are very appropriate for extreme diseases."
Details
From 'Epidemics, Book I', a core ethical principle of medical practice, often summarized as 'primum non nocere' (first, do no harm).
Date: c. 5th Century BCE
PhilosophicalVerification
Unverifiable
Found in 1 providers: gemini
1 source checked
Understanding this quote
What it means
The quote establishes a hierarchy of medical obligation: first, actively help the patient; if that's not possible, at minimum avoid making things worse. It's a practical two-tier ethical framework — prioritize beneficial intervention, but when uncertain, choose restraint. The phrase 'make a habit' emphasizes that ethical caution should be an ingrained reflex, not a case-by-case decision, embedded in every clinical encounter.
Relevance to Hippocrates
Hippocrates founded medicine as a rational discipline, separating it from superstition and priestly healing. He emphasized systematic observation, patient welfare, and professional ethics — the Hippocratic Corpus codified these values across 60+ treatises. This quote reflects his foundational method: assess carefully, intervene purposefully, and never let treatment worsen the patient's condition. His school at Cos trained physicians to see restraint as equal in virtue to cure.
The era
In 5th-century BCE Greece, medicine was intertwined with temple healing, divine ritual, and folk remedies. There were no licensing boards, no regulated training, and treatments like bloodletting and harsh purges frequently killed patients. Hippocrates practiced during the Peloponnesian War, amid epidemics and widespread medical charlatanism. Establishing 'do no harm' as a baseline obligation was revolutionary — it made restraint and observation legitimate alternatives to aggressive, often fatal, interventions.
AI-generated insights based on extensive research and information for context. Factual errors? Email [email protected].