Treatment of Illness in Hospitals and Medical Education

In medieval England, people had access to a variety of medical care, from community-based treatments to more formal care in hospitals and from trained physicians. However, access to these services was limited, especially for the poorer segments of society. While hospitals and physicians did play significant roles in healthcare during this period, they were often reserved for those who could afford them.

Hospital Care

During the medieval period, the number of hospitals in England gradually increased. However, these hospitals were very different from modern healthcare facilities. Most hospitals were owned and operated by the Church, often linked to monasteries or convents. Some hospitals were funded by wealthy individuals, particularly those who donated money or property as part of their will, often in exchange for prayers for their soul after their death. This reflects the central role of religion in medieval healthcare, as people believed that caring for the sick was a way to earn spiritual rewards.

• Care in Hospitals: The care provided in these hospitals was more about offering a place of rest and spiritual comfort rather than physical treatment or cures. The primary goal was to provide a peaceful environment for patients to recover, often through prayer and rest. Monks and nuns were tasked with looking after patients, ensuring that their basic needs were met. They took care of the physical environment by keeping the hospital clean, changing bed linen regularly, and offering a peaceful place where patients could recuperate.
• Spiritual Care: Hospitals were also places where people could participate in religious activities, such as church services, from their beds. This reflected the strong belief that spiritual health was as important as physical health. For many patients, especially those from poorer backgrounds, hospitals provided not only care but also a sense of comfort and hope through religious rituals.
• Famous Hospitals: One of the most famous hospitals from this period is St Bartholomew's Hospital in London. It is still in operation today, having evolved into a modern healthcare institution. This hospital, like many others, primarily provided care for the sick rather than cures for diseases, highlighting the limited medical knowledge of the time.

Key Fact: Hospitals in medieval times provided care for patients, but they were not equipped to offer cures for illnesses.

Leprosy and Specialised Care

One of the most notable diseases treated in medieval hospitals was leprosy, a contagious and devastating skin disease. Leprosy caused severe physical deformities, such as fingers and toes falling off, hair loss, and eventually death. Due to the visible nature of the disease, lepers were feared and isolated from the rest of society.

• Isolation of Lepers: Leprosy was thought to be highly contagious, and those who contracted it were segregated from the general population. They were forced to live in special leper houses, where they could be kept apart from healthy individuals. In many cases, lepers had to wear distinctive cloaks and ring a bell to warn others of their presence, allowing people to keep their distance.
• No Care in Hospitals: Lepers and people suffering from other infectious diseases were often denied entry to regular hospitals due to the belief that they could spread their illnesses to other patients. Instead, they were cared for in separate leper houses where they were isolated from the community. This segregation was an early attempt to control the spread of disease, even though the mechanisms of disease transmission were not yet understood.

Physicians and Medical Education

Physicians in medieval England were trained at universities, where they studied the works of ancient physicians such as Hippocrates and Galen. The education of a physician typically lasted seven years, and during this time, students would learn to diagnose illnesses, recommend treatments, and use ancient medical texts to guide their practice.

• Training and Education: A significant part of a physician's training involved reading and interpreting the works of classical medical authorities like Galen, whose theories on the balance of the four humours remained influential for centuries. These medical students also learned anatomy, diagnosis, and treatments based on the prevailing theories of the time.
• Role of Physicians: Physicians were tasked with diagnosing illnesses by closely observing the symptoms of patients. They would then suggest treatments based on their diagnoses, though these treatments were often ineffective by modern standards. Common treatments included bloodletting, herbal remedies, and diet changes aimed at restoring the balance of the four humours.
• Limited Accessibility: Physicians were highly educated but were expensive, and as a result, their services were typically available only to the wealthier classes. The poor, in contrast, had to rely on community healers, family members, or women in the community, who provided care based on traditional remedies and herbal treatments.

Conclusion

The medieval healthcare system was a complex blend of religious and medical practices, with hospitals and physicians offering limited treatment options. While the Church played a central role in providing care, hospitals were not equipped to cure diseases, but instead focused on spiritual comfort and rest for the sick. Physicians, though educated and trained in ancient medical texts, were expensive and could only be accessed by the wealthy. For the poor, care came from family members or community healers. Despite the limitations of medieval medicine, the period laid the groundwork for the future development of medical knowledge and care.