Hello, and thank you for joining me.

I'm Mr. Marchin and I'll be your history teacher for today's lesson.

I'll be guiding you through all of our resources, and my top aims are to ensure not only that you enjoy our learning, but also that you can successfully meet today's lesson objective.

Welcome to today's lesson, mediaeval and health, but into today's lesson, you'll be able to explain the different types of medical care which were available to people in mediaeval Britain.

There are three key words which will help us navigate our way through today's lesson.

Those are diagnose, prescribe, and monasteries.

To diagnose something is to say what is wrong with someone who is sick.

To prescribe something is to say what medical treatment someone needs.

And monasteries are groups of buildings that are a home for religious men or women who live separately from other people.

Today's lesson will be split into free parts and we'll begin by thinking about physicians, apothecaries and barber-surgeons.

People who needed medical care and attention in mediaeval Britain could turn to a range of different groups.

Amongst these groups were physicians, apothecaries and barber-surgeons.

Mediaeval doctors were known as physicians.

Physicians spent several years at university receiving a medical education before they began working.

This university education focused mainly on learning the works of two ancient physicians, Hippocrates and Galen.

This was problematic as the works of these ancient authors actually contained some incorrect medical ideas about how the body and disease worked.

Even during dissections, which physicians were able to observe as part of their training, the focus was not on learning from what they could see in the body itself, but to accept the ideas of Galen and Hippocrates, which would be read aloud by a trained physician during the dissection.

Because of the emphasis on book-led learning, it was possible for a fully qualified doctor to leave university without ever having seen an actual patient.

As a result of their university education, physicians were very expensive.

This meant that only the rich could normally afford their services.

For those who could afford them, physicians focused on closely observing a patient, using this to diagnose what illness they were suffering from and to prescribe treatment.

Mediaeval physicians paid particular attention to the colour, smell, and taste of a patient's urine, as Hippocrates had said that this was important for making any diagnosis.

So, thinking about what we've just heard, what method was used to train most physicians at mediaeval universities? Was it book-led learning, experimentation, or observation? Pause video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was A.

Book-led learning was the method used most frequently to train physicians at mediaeval universities.

And let's try another question.

This time we have a statement which reads, "Mediaeval physicians usually diagnosed patients without observing them." Is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Now, okay, well done to everybody who said that statement was false, but we need to be able to justify our response.

So why is it that original statement was incorrect? Pause video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said, "Mediaeval physicians diagnose their patients after observing them closely, which even included paying attention to a patient's urine." And let's try one further question just to make sure our understanding is secure.

I want you to change one word to correct the following statement.

Mediaeval universities taught physicians to correct the works of ancient physicians like Hippocrates and Galen.

So consider which word appears to be incorrect and what should it be changed to? Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answer.

Now, okay, well done to everybody who said that the incorrect word was correct and that should have been changed.

To accept mediaeval universities taught physicians to accept the works of ancient physicians like Hippocrates and Galen.

Mediaeval physicians did not ordinarily provide the treatments they prescribed.

To receive these, patients often went to either an apothecary or a barber-surgeon.

Apothecaries made and sold medicines which were often herbal remedies.

So these medicines were based on specific instructions produced by physicians, whilst others were based on the apothecaries own recipes.

Unlike physicians, apothecaries were not university trained.

Instead, they learned by observing and working with other apothecaries.

This was similar to barber-surgeons who also learned by observing others and practising rather than by attending university.

Barber-surgeons were responsible for carrying out surgical treatments.

Most often this consisted of smaller procedures such as bloodletting and pulling teeth.

But mediaeval barber-surgeons also performed operations like amputations, largely because of their lack of university education.

Apothecaries and barber-surgeons tended to have less status than mediaeval physicians.

Okay, so let's check our understanding again.

I want you to write the missing word from the following sentence.

"Mediaeval physicians, blank, treatments for their patients, but did not normally provide these treatments themselves." So what's the missing word? Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the missing word was "Prescribed." Mediaeval physicians prescribed treatments for their patients, but did not normally provide these treatments themselves.

Let's write another question.

"Which group of mediaeval caregivers was usually responsible for making and selling medicines?" Pause video here when you are ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was "Apothecaries." Apothecaries were usually responsible for making and selling medicines.

Sometimes these followed instructions given by physicians apothecaries own recipes.

And let's try one final question.

"Which group was usually responsible for performing bloodletting procedures?" Pause video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was barber-surgeons.

Barber-surgeons were usually responsible for performing bloodletting procedures and other surgical procedures.

So we are now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about physicians, apothecaries and barber-surgeons into practise.

I want you to study the following statements which read physicians, apothecaries and barber-surgeons all trained at university.

Mediaeval physicians sometimes tasted patients urine, barber-surgeons made and sold medicines, and mediaeval physicians usually diagnosed and treated their patients.

Firstly, I want you to identify whether each of those statements is true or false, and then I want you to correct any of the false statements.

You should provide additional detail to support the corrections you make.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect upon your responses.

So, well done for all of your effort on that task.

Firstly, I asked you to identify whether each of our statements was true or false, and you should have said that our first statement was false, that our second statement was true, and that our third and fourth statements were both false.

So then I asked you to correct any of the statements which were false and to provide additional detail to support your corrections.

Your answers may have included, physicians were trained at university, but apothecaries and barber-surgeons were not.

They learned by observation and practise instead.

Apothecaries made and sold medicines, whereas barber-surgeons offered surgical treatments.

And mediaeval physicians usually diagnosed and prescribed treatments, but treatments were usually performed by other caregivers.

So really well done if your own responses look something like those models, which we've just seen.

So now we're ready to move on to the second part of our lesson, where we are going to focus on mediaeval hospitals.

Those who are ill in mediaeval Britain could also visit specific locations to receive medical care.

Hospitals existed in many places and offered care for those with a range of different conditions.

There were many hospitals in mediaeval Britain.

In fact, between 1000 and 1500, over 700 hospitals were founded across England alone.

These hospitals provided care to many different people, but this care often did not involve medical treatment.

Indeed, mediaeval hospitals were envisaged as places where the sick could rest, and any treatment that was provided was often religious in nature.

Many hospitals were linked to churches, and monasteries and staffed by religious carers, like nuns and monks rather than by physicians, apothecaries and barber-surgeons.

For example, St.

Bartholomew's Hospital in London was founded by a priest in 1123.

It was hoped that with prayer, a strictly controlled diet and the ability to rest in quiet spaces, hospital patients would recover their health.

The care provided at hospitals linked to the church was often free, helping the poor to access medical care.

Mediaeval hospitals also had an emphasis on providing clean environments for those under their care.

Monks and nuns were tasked with ensuring that the bedding was changed and washed regularly.

However, it was also common for patients to share beds with one another in mediaeval hospitals because of limited space and resources, which could make the spread of some illnesses and diseases easier.

Mediaeval hospitals varied in both size and type.

Some had space for only 12 patients.

On the other hand, St.

Leonard's Hospital in New York, which was one of the largest in the country, had room to look after over 200 sick people by 1370.

As well as the sick, many hospitals also provided a space for those who were travelling on religious pilgrimages to rest.

Furthermore, some hospitals provided specialist care for particular groups.

For instance, Bethlem Hospital in London cared mostly for people with mental illnesses by the mid 15th century, whilst lazar houses were set up just outside many towns and cities as specialist hospitals to care for lepers, who were people who suffered from leprosy, a contagious disease.

So let's check our understanding of everything we've just heard.

How many hospitals were founded in England between 1000 and 1500? Was it over 70? Over 700 or over 7,000? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the correct answer was B.

Between 1000 and 1500 over 700 hospitals were founded in England alone.

And let's try another question.

This time we have a statement which reads, "Most hospitals were run by religious staff rather than physicians and surgeons." Is that statement true or false? Pause a video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was true, but we need to be able to justify our answer.

So why is it that original statement was correct? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said many hospitals were linked to churches and monasteries, and as a result was staffed by religious carers like nuns and monks.

Okay, so let's test our knowledge in a different way.

I want you to study the image shown on the screen, identify a detail which helps explain why illnesses and diseases sometimes spread rapidly between hospital patients.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who noticed that we can see two patients in the middle of our image, sharing a bed.

So this was a potential risk in mediaeval hospitals as patients often shared beds, diseases could sometimes spread quite easily between them.

And let's try one final question.

"Lazar houses were hospitals set up for which specific group, was it lepers, pilgrims, or people with mental illness?" Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was A.

Lazar houses were hospitals set up for people with leprosy of what's known as lepers.

So we are now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about mediaeval hospitals into practise.

I want you to describe two key characteristics of mediaeval hospitals.

Each of your descriptions should be supported by specific factual details.

So pause the video here and press play when you are ready to reflect on your responses.

Okay, well done to everybody for your hard work on that task.

So I asked you to describe two key characteristics of mediaeval hospitals.

And your answer may have included that religion was very important for the running of mediaeval hospitals.

Most were linked to churches or monasteries and run by nuns and monks, who focused on prayer and helping patients rest rather than providing medical treatments.

And you may also have put that hospital care became more available in the mediaeval period.

Over 700 hospitals were founded in England between 1000 and 1500, including specialist hospitals like Bedlam for patients with mental illnesses.

So really well done.

If your own answers look something similar to those models we've just seen.

And now we're ready to move on to the third and final part of our lesson for today, where we are going to think about caregivers in the community.

For many people in mediaeval England, medical care was something they received from within their own community groups.

Women played a particularly important role as caregivers in local communities.

Most people in mediaeval England never visited a physician because they were too expensive.

Instead, those who were sick often turned to members of their own families and communities for care.

Whilst mediaeval physicians, apothecaries and barber-surgeons were usually men, women were particularly important as caregivers in local communities.

In particular, mothers and wives often provided care to members of their families who were unwell.

This care included the use of herbal remedies, which were often passed down by word of mouth between generations.

Sometimes individual women and men gained a reputation for the medical assistance they could offer and became known as wise women or wise men.

Most mediaeval villages where the majority of the population lived had their own wise people, making them more common than physicians and barber-surgeons.

Many of these wise people relied on donations rather than charging for all of their services, so many of us could access the care they offered.

The wise people frequently offered a mix of herbal remedies, first aid, and supernatural cures to treat simple illnesses and could also perform some medical tasks like delivering babies.

Some of their methods could be quite effective.

Herbal remedies offered to women giving birth included ergot, which is still used in modern medicine to help speed up childbirth and recovery.

However, due to a lack of scientific understanding, many remedies offered by wise women and men were ineffective.

So, let's reflect on everything we've just heard.

I want you to identify the correct similarity between mediaeval wise people and apothecaries.

Was it that both groups were almost entirely male? That both groups provided herbal remedies as medicines, or that both groups charged for all of their services? Pause video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was B, a similarity between mediaeval apothecaries and wise people was that both groups provided herbal remedies as medicines.

And now let's try another question.

This time I want you to identify free groups of women who often provided medical care in the mediaeval period.

Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answers.

Okay, well done to everybody who named the following groups.

You may have talked about mothers, wise women, and nuns.

These different groups all provided medical care in some locations and to different groups of people during the mediaeval period.

And let's keep making sure our new knowledge is secure.

Which group of mediaeval caregivers was most common? Was it barber-surgeons, physicians, or wise men and women? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the correct answer was C.

Wise men and wise women were the most common group of mediaeval caregivers.

So, we're now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about mediaeval medical care into practise.

I want you to study Lucas's claim.

Lucas says that many people were able to access medical care in mediaeval Britain.

I want you to explain why Lucas's claim is accurate.

You should refer to different groups of caregivers as part of your answer.

So pause video here and press play when you are ready to reflect on your response.

Okay, well done for all of your effort on that task.

So I asked you to explain why Lucas's claim is accurate.

Endurance may have included.

Lucas's claim is accurate because although most people never visited a physician because they were too expensive, more affordable care was available from other providers.

For example, hospitals linked to the church often provided free care to the sick.

This meant that even the poor could receive some care when they were ill.

Similarly, many people received care from within their own families, especially from mothers and wives who might administer traditional herbal treatments.

Likewise, wise women and wise men were commonly found in mediaeval villages.

These wise people often provided herbal remedies, first aid and supernatural cures based on donations.

So, really well done if your own response look something like that model answer, which we've just seen.

And that means we've now reached the end of our lesson, which puts us in a good position to summarise what we've learned about mediaeval caregivers.

We've seen that mediaeval physicians diagnosed patients after observing them closely, many would even taste patient's urine.

Although physicians were universally educated, they were trained to accept many incorrect medical ideas like some of Galen's.

Apothecaries and barber-surgeons offered treatments by making medicines and performing surgical procedures.

Many hospitals provided care to the sick, but this treatment focused on religion and rest rather than trying to cure patients.

And most medical care was access within local communities, either from female family members or from wise women and wise men.

So, really well done for all of your hard work and effort during today's lesson.

It's been a pleasure to help guide you for our resources today, and I look forward to seeing you again in future as we continue to think about mediaeval medicine and health.