Ancient Egyptians Had Freedom to Choose Healthcare Providers Despite Advanced Pharmaceutical Treatments [Study]

(Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Vyacheslav Argenberg)
Ancient Egyptians Had the Freedom To Choose Healthcare Providers Despite Advanced Pharmaceutical Treatments [Study]

Ancient Egyptians have advanced healthcare systems even thousands of years ago. However, the people were still free to seek "magical" treatment if they wished to do so.

Ancient Egyptians Sometimes Seek Magic To Aid Illness

A recent study looked into the healthcare system of the ancient people in Egypt. Researchers Rosalie David and Roger Forshaw learned Egyptians already had an "advanced and successful" healthcare system, and the people were free whether they sought the help of medical professionals or quack doctors.

While some healers would likely specialize in "magical" therapies like casting spells or applying pressure on injured limbs, others could offer more practical treatments like minor surgery or bandaging broken limbs.

The type of sickness was a factor in these decisions, but not the only one. Some patients may have consulted both sorts of practitioners and sought various treatments to seek a cure.

For example, practical treatment was suggested where the cause was evident; where the cause was not obvious, magic may have been utilized to remove the "disease demon."

"Some physicians had a dual religious/secular role; they provided medical treatment and, as priests of deities associated with healing, spent part of each year performing daily rituals in temples and perhaps providing medical training there. Other physicians and health providers had secular or 'magical' roles and provided community treatment in towns and villages," the researchers explained.

There is some evidence from inscriptions to show that people paid for care. However, this was probably depending on what they could afford, which means therapies were not solely reserved for the wealthy.

A few doctors and other medical professionals, like midwives, made house calls for patients. On the other hand, several temple precincts also featured facilities where patients might get different kinds of rehabilitation. Certain medical professionals cared for injured soldiers, workers, and construction sites. Senior state bureaucrats were stationed in the palaces, while palace physicians cared for the king and the royal family.

The medical records of the ancient Egyptians provided individual case studies with a list of symptoms; they did not define "diseases" in the modern sense. Sometimes, the condition's prognosis is curable, incurable, or uncertain, and treatment ingredients, when appropriate, are frequently described.

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Ancient Egyptian Advanced Healthcare System

The researchers wanted to examine how the ancient Egyptians incorporated healing methods from a different perspective. Previous accounts reportedly concentrated on diseases, health complaints, and treatments based on inscriptions and palaeopathological records.

However, the new study wished to provide a "people-focused" interpretation of how the system worked for healthcare providers and their patients.

Egyptians' healthcare system reportedly included pharmaceutical treatments, basic surgery, pragmatic treatments, and less magical remedies. The treatments were also universally available to everyone from all levels of society.

"The Egyptian healthcare system was advanced and successful, not least for devising innovative ways to treat snake bites and save lives. Its achievements although widely praised in antiquity, are often not fully recognized today. This ancient Egyptian medicine was even evident in medieval and later practices in Europe, and some aspects still survive today in modern 'Western' medicine," David said.