THE SIGNIFICANCE OF HIPPOCRATES
for Medieval Medicine

Hippocrates of Cos (a Greek island) lived in the 4th century BC – he was mentioned by Greeks of the time as a renowned physician.  He is called ‘the Father of Medicine’ and STILL gets rave reviews – take these comments by Google AI:

  •   “His emphasis on observation, ethics, and naturalistic explanations laid the groundwork for the scientific approach to medicine.”

  •   “His influence can be seen in modern medical practices, particularly in the areas of clinical observation, ethical guidelines, and the understanding of the importance of lifestyle in health.”

But whether he DESERVES this reputation you can decide for yourself…

Firstly,

...  he did not write the 70 books of the ‘Hippocratic Corpus’ which bear his name – they were written over the course of 500 years by physicians from Medical Schools in Cos, Alexandria and other parts of the Greek world! Thus the ‘Hippocratic Corpus’ was the total of Greek teaching about medicine, not the ideas of one man … which is why your specification talks only about ‘Hippocratic methods and treatments’.  Nowadays, we tend to look down on professors who take credit for their students’ work … and the 1980s pop band Milli Vanilli were famously ruined when it came to light that they were just lip-syncing to songs recorded by session musicians. 

Secondly,

...  although Google AI offers a number of contributions it claims the Hippocratic Corpus made to medicine … again, I will leave it to you to decide whether the accolades are warranted:

1.  Rational Medicine – “Hippocrates moved away from attributing illnesses to divine intervention, emphasizing natural causes” suggests Google AI. 

True, he did … but the Egyptians had beaten him to it by more than a millennium.  And anyone who suggests that Hippocratic principles removed the supernatural element from Medicine hasn’t studied medieval medicine.  Hippocratic medicine – as ALL medicine until the 19th century – was a mixture of rational and supernatural beliefs.  Most of all, Hippocratic ‘rational’ medicine was not ‘scientific’ medicine.  Greek doctors LOOKED, and then tried to formulate reasons for what they saw … but they did not apply scientific methods of trial and testing to their ideas, and they did not have the technology to find out what was really going on. 

2.  Clinical Observation – “He promoted detailed examinations of patients” says Google AI (clubbed fingers, a sign of heart problems, are still called ‘Hippocratic fingers’). 

Again, however, the Egyptians had got there first – looking at your patient’s symptoms before you started treating them WAS a breakthrough, but the Egyptians were doing it two thousand years before Hippocrates.  And again, we know that medieval doctors, whilst they did examine their patients, did not rely on clinical observation alone to diagnose the problem – for them, diagnosis was an ‘art’ not a science, and they would take into account other divine and astral influences. 

3.  Hippocratic Oath – on this, the best Google AI can suggest is that: “While the oath attributed to him was likely written by others, it reflects his ethical principles of patient care and is still influential today.”

Errmm … so he didn’t write it?  And have you read the Oath, the actual Hippocratic Oath?  Far from being “a pledge to uphold medical standards and share knowledge”, its promises include not to poison the patient (Wow!), and NOT to share knowledge beyond family and paying students.  And it starts: “I swear by Apollo Healer, by Asclepius, by Hygeia, by Panacea, and by all the gods and goddesses…”, which rather undercuts the claim above that the Corpus eliminated religion from medicine.  Some American doctors do still take a ‘Hippocratic Oath’, but it is very different and updated. 

4.  Humoral theory – there is no doubt that the Theory of the Four Humours had a MASSIVE effect on medieval medical practices and for centuries after … in this respect the significance of Hippocratic medicine in the Middle Ages is undeniable. 

But it was nonsense! The best Google AI can do on this is: “While this theory was later proven incorrect, it highlights Hippocrates's attempt to explain disease through naturalistic principles.” … faint praise indeed.  The reality is that the Theory of the Four Humours took medicine down a two-millennia-long wrong turning which actually prevented doctors from trying to find the correct causes of disease – and their respect for Hippocrates led them to reject other, better, ideas(!) – into the 19th century. 

So I would suggest that Hippocratic medicine was hugely significant … mainly in the harm it did long term. 

What do you think?

PS tbf, Hippo crates are useful for transporting hippopotami.