Students of most medical schools in the US, Canada, and the UK take an oath or pledge on graduation which is modeled on or derived from the Hippocratic Oath. This is not common practice in Irish Medical Schools. Discuss briefly what you see to be the advantages and disadvantages of taking such an oath or pledge on graduation. On balance, do you believe Irish medical schools should oblige their graduates to take an oath or pledge on graduation? If so, state briefly what you would include in such a pledge. If not, what alternative mechanisms would you propose to ensure graduates adhere to key ethical principles.

Marks will also be awarded for overall presentation, coherence, and evidence of deeper thought/ reading around the topic (up to a maximum of 20 marks).
The essay should be not less than 2,000 and not more than 2,500 words. You should cite (in either the Vancouver or Harvard format) at least 10 and not more than 20 references you have read in the course of preparing your essay.

Plagiarism will result in an automatic failure of the module with a return of a zero mark for the continuous assessment component. It may also lead to the institution of disciplinary procedures under fitness to practice procedures.