Training of Doctors
Anyone could set up practice as a doctor, since there was no formal system of teaching or testing of proficiency, it was not necessary to pass any exams before opening a practice. Scrupulous doctors joined an established physician and learned from him while assisting him in his work.
(Dominik, 113)
(Dominik, 113)
Types of Doctors
Independent- Most doctors set up their own private practices. Consulted in a room of his own home or traveled.
Public- Public doctors were paid by the civic authorities to provide medical care for all who required it. They were not permitted to charge patients, but they might receive a gift of money. Consulting rooms were provided by the civic authority.
Competition for these posts of public doctors was lively so emperor Antoninus Pius introduced a law:
-Ten for capital cities
-Seven for large towns
-Five for small towns
Female- Medicine was one of the few activities open to Roman women. Such women were called medicae and were not to unusual in the Roman world. They concerned themselves mainly with the diseases and conditions of women.
Military- Surgeons in the army would have had much opportunity to practice their surgical skills, since they had to deal with wounded men. Army doctors had no other choice but to try and treat a severely wounded soldier.
(Dominik, 114-116)
Public- Public doctors were paid by the civic authorities to provide medical care for all who required it. They were not permitted to charge patients, but they might receive a gift of money. Consulting rooms were provided by the civic authority.
Competition for these posts of public doctors was lively so emperor Antoninus Pius introduced a law:
-Ten for capital cities
-Seven for large towns
-Five for small towns
Female- Medicine was one of the few activities open to Roman women. Such women were called medicae and were not to unusual in the Roman world. They concerned themselves mainly with the diseases and conditions of women.
Military- Surgeons in the army would have had much opportunity to practice their surgical skills, since they had to deal with wounded men. Army doctors had no other choice but to try and treat a severely wounded soldier.
(Dominik, 114-116)
Surgery
The practice of surgery in ancient medicine lacked due to the lack of knowledge about anatomy and because of the absence of anesthesia. Opium poppy and henbane were used as sedatives and painkillers during surgery. Lack of true anesthesia meant that the surgeon's main concern was to complete a surgical procedure as quickly as possibly. The lack of antiseptic agents meant that infection was a major hazard of ancient surgery.
(Dominik, 116-117)
(Dominik, 116-117)
Instruments
Precision tools made for specific tasks were kept in a custom-made, hinged wooden case:
-Bottles
-Jars
-Scalpel
-Forceps
-Hooks
-Probes
-Needles
(Dominik, 117)
-Bottles
-Jars
-Scalpel
-Forceps
-Hooks
-Probes
-Needles
(Dominik, 117)
Gynecology
Childbirth- A risky business in the ancient world and, even if the mother and child both survived, there was always a chance that the child would not live to adulthood, since infant mortality was high. If the child did survive, a wet nurse was often employed.
Contraception- Some contraceptive measures included smearing the entrance to the uterus with olive oil or honey or sap from a cedar or a balsam tree, alone or mixed with white lead, as well as drinking the juice of the silphium plant.
Abortion- Abortion included violent exercises such as the lifting of heavy weights, and being jolted and shaken up during carriage rides. If those didn't work, protracted baths in various substances were recommended, as well as abstention from food and drinking the juice of the silphium plant.
Exposure-Final resort, disposing of an unwanted child. Entailed the abandonment of a child to starve to death.
Hysteria-A strange belief that the uterus was a mobile organ that moved around within the abdomen or even further, causing pain through displacement and distortion, particularly in women.
(Dominik, 118-122)
Contraception- Some contraceptive measures included smearing the entrance to the uterus with olive oil or honey or sap from a cedar or a balsam tree, alone or mixed with white lead, as well as drinking the juice of the silphium plant.
Abortion- Abortion included violent exercises such as the lifting of heavy weights, and being jolted and shaken up during carriage rides. If those didn't work, protracted baths in various substances were recommended, as well as abstention from food and drinking the juice of the silphium plant.
Exposure-Final resort, disposing of an unwanted child. Entailed the abandonment of a child to starve to death.
Hysteria-A strange belief that the uterus was a mobile organ that moved around within the abdomen or even further, causing pain through displacement and distortion, particularly in women.
(Dominik, 118-122)
Ophthalmology
Eye diseases were common in the ancient world. One of the most frequent operations was the one performed to remove ingrown eyelashes. Eye specialist was known as a medicus ocularius.
(Dominik, 123)
(Dominik, 123)
Medical Treatments
Folk Treatments- Those suffering from illness also had recourse to the god and may indeed have turned to them for the restoration of bodily health in preference to a doctor.
Divine Healing- Stone carvings or bronze plaques that depict ears, eyes, limbs, or other body parts for which suppliants were requesting healing or giving thanks for healing received.
(Dominik, 123-125)
Divine Healing- Stone carvings or bronze plaques that depict ears, eyes, limbs, or other body parts for which suppliants were requesting healing or giving thanks for healing received.
(Dominik, 123-125)
Preventive Medicine
Preventive medicine was very important, since there was little understanding of the causes and transmission of diseases, particularly those caused by micro-organisms and through poor hygiene and sanitation. Preventive medicine concentrated on dietetics and regimen (course of exercise, way of life or diet).
(Dominik, 125-126)
(Dominik, 125-126)