Description
Book SynopsisA comprehensive study of both patients and healers in the High Roman Empire.
Patients and Healers in the High Roman Empire offers a fascinating holistic look at the practice of ancient Roman medicine. Ido Irsaelowich presents three richly detailed case studiesone focusing on the home and reproduction; another on the army; the last on medical tourismfrom the point of view of those on both sides of the patient-healer divide. He explains in depth how people in the classical world became aware of their ailments, what they believed caused particular illnesses, and why they turned to certain healersroot cutters, gymnastic trainers, dream interpreters, pharmacologists, and priestsor sought medical care in specific places such as temples, bath houses, and city centers.
The book brings to life the complex behavior and social status of all the actors involved in the medical marketplace. It also sheds new light on classical theories about sickness, the measures Roman
Trade Review
Patients and Healers is a substantial piece of scholarship, worthy of careful study for anyone interested the subject. Its focus on the perceptions and motives of the patient with emphasis on inscriptions and ex-voto dedications distinguishes this book from other general studies on health care under the Empire. Bryn Mawr Classical Review A comprehensive study of the medical market and the interactions between patients and healers in the Roman Empire. Choice Israelowich's book best succeeds in clearly and methodically drawing out the structure of a medical world in which many of the basic tenets of medicine were still being debated, and in including in his discussion all of the healing institutions that functioned together in the Roman world, be they religious, traditional, or philosophical. New England Classical Journal
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. The Identity of Physicians during the High Roman Empire
The Establishment of Medicine as a Profession in Rome
The Nature of the Medical Market Place during the High Roman Empire
The Case of Psasnis
Conclusion
2. Patients' Understanding of Health and Illness
Patients and Their Healers
Physicians and Temple Medicine
Aelius Aristides
Conclusion
3. The Domus and Reproduction
Childbirth
Physicians and Midwives
Mothers' Experiences
Conclusion
4. Health Care in the Roman Army
Theoretical Background
The Establishment of the Roman Imperial Medical Corps
The Responsibilities of the Army Physician and of the Medical Corps
Military Physicians and Local Populations
Conclusion
5. Medical Tourism during the High Roman Empire
Temples
Water
Cities
Conclusion
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
