There are two medical symbols associated with medicine – the single
serpent-entwined staff of Asclepius and the double serpent-entwined
with surmounting wings staff of Hermes (more commonly knows as the
Caduceus). The single serpent staff represents the staff of Greek
demigod Asklepios. He represents the healing aspect of medicine. His
daughters Hygea, Meditrine, and Panacea also symbolize important
aspects of health (cleanliness, medicine, and healing). The double
serpent staff represents Herms, the messenger of gods who has the
responsibility of carrying souls into the underworld. In America, the
two serpent symbol is predominately used to signify the medical
profession while in the rest of the world, the one serpent symbol is
used.
Is the use of the modern caduceus based on a
misunderstanding of medical symbols? Asklepios so exemplified the
ideal physician that the term “Asclepiades” was used to refer to many
early physicians, including Hippocrates. The single serpent caduceus
comes from the Hermes, the son of Zeus. It is said that he was a great
peacemaker and the caduceus was created when he separated two fighting
snakes with his staff. The serpents entwined as a show of friendship.
The Hippocratic Oath, the one all medical students pledge as
they graduate from medical school mentions Apollo, Asclepius, Hygea,
and Panacea, but makes no reference at all to Hermes. Many of the
veterinarians and dentists have begun using the single serpent medical
symbol. However, the physicians of this country continue to use the
double serpent staff as a medical symbol.
If this was
indeed a mistake to use the medical symbols inappropriately, it may be
attributed to the English publisher of a medical textbook. He used the
two serpent caduceus as the printer’s mark on the title page of medical
textbooks headed to the United States. To further the use of the
caduceus, the U.S. Army Medical Corps used it as its medical symbol in
1902.
Perhaps it doesn’t matter which of the medical symbols is
used as long as the doctors using is remember the Hippocratic Oath and
take their profession seriously.