The article deals with the issues of ethics and deontology in surgical activity. It is shown that it is in the field of surgery that almost any active influence, even a single word from a doctor, and often middle and junior medical personnel, is fraught with the threat of considerable dangers for the patient, ranging from physical pain and infection to severe mental trauma. Based on specific examples from history, questions concerning what qualities, specifically of a medical nature, should be developed in every possible way and constantly improved by a future surgeon are revealed in detail.