Asclepion of Epidaurus: the application of a historical perspective in medical education

Medical students perceive the ancient Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus as a powerful and essential historical legacy that could enrich their medical education. A study involving 105 senior-year Athens Medical School students found that participants, after a multimedia lecture on the Asclepion's structure and role, expressed positive attitudes toward its significance, demonstrating interest and excitement about this unfamiliar but valuable knowledge. The research used semantic differential analysis of responses to a questionnaire with opposite adjective pairs to evaluate student perceptions. The findings suggest that integrating historical perspectives like those from Epidaurus could enhance medical ethos and education by grounding modern practices in ancient healing traditions.

Papageorgiou, C., Konstantinou, G., Lambrinoudakis, V., Papageorgiou, C., & Yiannopoulou, K. G. (2022). Asclepion of Epidaurus: the application of a historical perspective in medical education. Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13010-022-00120-6