Overview
Students will learn about the pre-med club and its format, name their club, learn about the Hippocratic Oath, create their own oath, create their name badges, and if time permits, create posters to promote the club to other students. Other additional activities include sharing the Inspiring Story of the week, journal writing, and assigning students to find an article to share at the next meeting.
Outcomes
- The group will have established a club name
- The group will have created their own oath
- Students will have created name badges that can be used for each lesson
- Students will know the format of the club and what they will be learning about in the club
- If time permits, students will create posters to promote the club to other students
Discussion
Facilitator: When everyone has arrived, welcome the group, introduce yourself, and discuss the club logistics. If you will always be meeting in the same place, let them know. If not, tell them how you will alert them to where the club will meet. Then, let the students know if you will be meeting weekly or monthly (this may vary by school). Then, begin bringing them into the discussion. Suggested questions and responses are below to help you facilitate a discussion.
What is a pre-med club? Does anyone have any ideas about what you think we’ll be talking about and doing when we meet?
In this club we’ll learn about what doctors do, the kinds of places they work, jobs they have and tools and resources they use to help people stay well or get better when they’re sick. We’ll talk about what you can do to learn more about the medical field, what you can do to help get on a path to apply to medical school, and learn about medicine in your community.
Activity
Part 1: Club Name
Facilitator: What should we name our pre-med club?
Ask students for suggestions and write them on the board. Then, vote to see which one is most popular. Examples: “Pre-Med Doctors in the D”, “Belmont Middle Pre-Meds.”
Part 2: Name Badges
Hand out blank name badges. Have your students write their names on their name badges and decorate them.
Tip: Hand out the badges at the beginning of each meeting and have the students wear them for the length of the meeting.
Part 3: Hippocratic Oath
Facilitator: Now that we have a name for our club and badges for everyone, it’s time to create the Club Oath.
Q: What is an oath?
A: An oath is a promise or pledge a person makes, usually in front of other people.
Q: What is an oath that you or someone you know has taken?
A: The Pledge of Allegiance. On a television show, you may have seen someone “swear to tell the truth” before they testify in court. The Boy Scout or Girl Scout pledge is a type of oath. One of the most famous oaths is the Hippocratic Oath.
Q: The Hippo what? Who is this Hippo-crates guy?
A: The Hippocratic Oath is an oath historically taken by physicians and other healthcare professionals swearing to practice medicine ethically. To act ethically means to do things that are right and fair. Most medical schools have their students take the oath sometime during medical school or at graduation. The Oath was believed to be originally written about 2500 years ago by a Greek man named Hippocrates. Many people call Hippocrates the father of western medicine.
Facilitator: Print and hand out or project the Hippocratic Oath. Have the students take turns reading one line at a time. Ask the students to describe what is being promised in each time.
- What does it mean?
- Why would someone promise this?
- Why is the promise important?
Wrap Up
Collect all name badges that will be given out and collected at the beginning and end of each club meeting. If your students have written journal entries, collect those to keep for the next meeting.
Additional Activities
- Club Poster
Have students create a poster for the club to help promote it to other students. Include when and where the club meets, and/or how to sign up. - Inspiring Story of the week
Inspiring Stories are interviews with medical students or physicians who share the story of their journey and obstacles they have overcome to get where they are. Go to the website and view the inspiring stories, or, print them out and pass them around.
Discuss: Verne’ Rochford - Journal writing
Have the students write their first impressions about the club and what they hope to learn and achieve through their participation.
Note for facilitator: The journal is an excellent way for students to record progress, what they’ve learned over the course club, and further questions they’d like to explore. For older students, it can help them describe their club participation when later writing personal statements. - Article to share with group next time
Assign one or two students to find an interesting article having to do with medicine or being a physician. Have the students share what they’ve read and facilitate a short discussion with the group about the article or topic.