I learned something today!

[Gregf]

I was discussing an idea for pens to give nurses with a friend in nursing school. I showed her a pic from the internet, that used Caduceus the symbol with two coiled snakes.

Found out this is not really the correct medical symbol.
The Caduceus is a symbol of Hermes or Mercury in Greek and Roman mythology. Caduceus symbol is identified with thieves, merchants, and messengers, and Mercury is said to be a patron of thieves and outlaws, not a desirable protector of physicians.

The Rod of Asclepius which is a single snake is actually the correct one.

The Rod of Asclepius belongs to Aesculapius, who was the revered Greek god of healing.

 

[sorcerertd]

That's interesting knowledge. Keep in mind that nurses are infamous for stealing each other's pens. Maybe the Caduceus isn't so far off after all?

 

[Gregf]

The erroneous usage of the caduceus as the symbol of medicine was popularized by a mistake in 1902 when the US Army Medical Corps adopted it as their insignia.

 

[sorcerertd]

Leave it to the Army... Good thing it wasn't the Marines, huh? I wonder if we tried and that's why we don't have our own medics? LOL.

 

[Kenny Durrant]

That's for the information. I too learned something. I was told the they were both medical and depending on if there was one or two snake it was different levels or types of doctors or nurses.

 

[Alan Morrison]

Interestingly, in around 1410 BC, Moses was instructed to erect a pole with a brass serpent atop in the desert so that those who looked upon it were healed.
Numbers 21 v 8-9.
The greek Rod of Asclepius symbol is thought to date around the 8th century BC and to be derived from the Hebrew symbol.

 

[CHARLES STOPCZYNSKI]

I too learned a similar lesson when making a graduation pen for our daughter earning a Masters in Respiratory Therapy. RRT, not RT. I remade the pen correctly and put the other aside for a few years. Just recently gave it to my Chiropractor who will present it to his son in a couple of months when he receives his Radiology degree.

 

[wolf creek knives]

Not sure about the Thieves and Merchants but I wore a Caduceus on my left arm on my U.S. Navy uniform for some time on my rank/rate patch. It was part of being a Navy Corpsman and every Corpsman I've ever known wore it proudly.

 

[TellicoTurning]

I appreciated every Navy corpsman I ever met, except the one that was a full blooded Navajo when I was in the hospital on Guam.
After a surgery I was in a little pain and the doctor had instructed him to give me a short of morphine.... he did, in the dark, in the back side of my arm... the morphine felt good, but the next morning my arm didn't move very well... I had one H...of a time drinking my coffee and eating breakfast with an rm that wouldn't reach my mouth without excruciating pain. Still have a lot of respect for the rating, even the Navajp, and especially the guys who served with the marines.