International Journal of Research and Review Vol.7; Issue: 12; December 2020 Website: www.ijrrjournal.com Review Article E-ISSN: 2349-9788; P-ISSN: 2454-2237 Ancient History of Hospitals Dr. (Prof.) Roopam Kumar Guptai , Ratan Lal Guptaii iPhD (Management), MD (Anatomy), ACME, MHA, MSc, DIH, MBBS, Professor (Anatomy) & Medical Superintendent, C. U. Shah Medical College Hospital, Dudhrej Road, Surendranagar, Gujarat. 363 001 iiM.A. (Labour & Social Welfare), Research Scholar in Indian History, Retd. Human Resource Executive, Tata Motors Corresponding Author: Roopam Kumar Gupta ABSTRACT dearth of primary sources, unreliable secondary sources and numerous The history of medicine and different healing hypotheses. A hospital is a place for therapies have been extensively studied and receiving medical or surgical care. The published, but the history of ‘Hospitals’ or the authors aim to review the existing literature place where these healing activities were on this topic and present a lucid account, actually carried out, often escapes attention of medical historians. In this review article the steering away from unnecessary factual authors have presented a lucid account of the details, dates and scholarly differences, but Ancient History of Hospitals from approx. 6500 at the same time trying to bring about the BC to 650 AD. Beginning with the etymological charisma of the past ‘achievements’ in an investigation of the word ‘Hospital’, the author innovative style and through a new describes in detail the Neolithic ‘Cave paradigm. Hospitals’, Ancient Indian ‘Ayurvedic Medical Schools’ of Takshila and Kasi, the Buddhist Etymology of the word ‘Hospital’ ‘Monastic Hospitals’ in Srilanka, Mesopotamian Etymology is the study of the history ‘House of Life & Healing’, Tibet’s ‘Palace of words. Etymologically, the journey of the hospitals’, Greek Temple Hospitals word ‘Hospital’ started as Latin ‘Hospes’ ‘Asclepeions’, Roman Military Hospitals ‘Valetudinaria’, Medicity ‘Basilias’, and and was modified to ‘hospitalis’, ‘hospitale’ ‘Bimaristans’ of Gondeshapur. This endeavour and finally to ‘hospital’. Latin ‘hospes’, reviews the ancient history of hospitals to means ‘a stranger, foreigner, or a guest’, and highlight the charisma of the past the noun form derived from this word is ‘achievements’ in an innovative style and ‘hospitium’ which means ‘hospitality’. through a new paradigm. ‘Hospes’ is also the root for few English words like host, hospitality, hospice, hostel Keywords: History of Hospital, Asclepeions, and hotel. They are related partially by Valetudinaria, Basilias, Bimaristan function too and there are similarities in the words used for Hospital in different INTRODUCTION languages. The German word is 'Spital', the “Whoever wishes to foresee the French use ‘hôpital’, in Irish it is ‘ospidéal’, future must consult the past”- Machiavelli. in Hindi and Urdu it is ‘Haspataal’ or There is a lot of literature available ‘Aspataal’, in Turkish it is ‘Hastane’ and in on ‘History of Medicine’ and the other Polish language it is ‘szpital’. ‘Healing Therapies’ that is often referred to by the contemporary physicians and The Prehistoric ‘Cave Hospitals’ surgeons. However the ‘Ancient History of ‘Disease’ must be as old as the Hospitals’ (approx. 6500 BC to 650 AD) is human race itself. The power of ‘self- not adequately researched, perhaps due to International Journal of Research and Review (ijrrjournal.com) 1 Vol.7; Issue: 12; December 2020 Roopam Kumar Gupta et. al. Ancient history of hospitals. awareness’ is endowed to the Homo have been found in Nyero rock paintings of Sapiens, to take care of themselves and their Eastern Uganda. [5] loved ones if they were not well. The clear evidences of surgeries Hospitals would invariably exist in being successfully performed and the any crude form, if ‘Surgical Procedures’ and coincidence of proximity to mysterious ‘Treatment’ of the diseased took place. The caves in Peru and cave paintings of witch- oldest surgical procedure known is doctors inside the caves, lends support to the ‘trephination’ and we have archaeological hypothesis that the first hospitals in the evidence in the form of trephined skulls prehistoric times of ‘cave men’ were indeed discovered from ‘Neolithic period’. At a the ‘cave hospitals’. burial site dating to 6500 BCE, in France, there were forty trephined skulls found Ancient Indian ‘Ayurvedic Medical together. [1] Many of the skulls showed Schools’ healing signs, indicating that the patients Ayurveda is sacredly considered to spent their post-operative time somewhere be as old as ‘Brahma’ the Hindu God of recovering, while the wounds healed and Creation. The practice may have started in then lived for years after the surgery. [2] pre historic times when people started to There is evidence of prehistoric trephination become conscious of their health and being commonly performed in the Cusco became aware that they had to take region, of Andean highlands. This is the measures to improve and preserve their same region where mysterious caves called lives. By the time of Indus Valley ‘Naupaiglesia’ have been discovered with Civilization, Ayurveda was the established interesting geometry, especially flat smooth system of healthcare. Archaeologists have surfaces, made by high technology found stag-horn and cuttlefish bone machines.[3] This coincidence leads to the suggesting that vegetables, animals and question, if these caves were used as minerals were used as sources for drugs. [6] hospitals for surgeries? Along with Indus Valley people placed great emphasis neurosurgery, dentistry was also practiced on personal hygiene and used cosmetics like during this period as archaeologists have collyrium for preventing and curing eye found Neolithic teeth in Mehgarh, diseases. [7] There are no documented Baluchistan province, showing clear signs evidences, but the excavations of the of drilling, using flint-tipped drills and archaeological sites at Harappa and bowstrings. [4] Mohenjo Daro, show a high degree of town In prehistoric communities there planning, awareness and practice regarding were medicine men, witch doctors or public health and sanitation, therefore the ‘shamans’ who were in charge of the tribe’s strong possibility of one of the buildings health, practiced plant based medicines, being used as a ‘Hospital’, exists. carried out rudimentary surgeries like The knowledge of Ayurveda is trephinations and of course, used spells and believed to have been passed on through charms to ward off evil spirits. In the cave ‘Shruti and Smriti’ from ‘Brahma’ through a of Lascaux, France, where Neanderthals and chain of great Sages like ‘Atreya’ and early Homo Sapiens lived 30,000 years ago, ‘Dhanvantri’, eventually to ‘Maharshi there is a cave painting depicting a ‘Dis- Charak’. There is no consensus on the dates emboweled bison’ and bird-headed human when Maharshi Charak lived but few figure, which is interpreted by researchers claim this as 200-100 BC. [8] He archaeologists as a ‘shaman’, a kind of wrote “Charak Samhita”, which is priest or healer with powers including the considered as an encyclopaedia of Ayurveda ability to communicate with spirits of other and he is hailed as the Father of Indian worlds. Similar paintings of witch doctors medicine. The place where the Sages Atreya and Maharshi Charak taught and practiced International Journal of Research and Review (ijrrjournal.com) 2 Vol.7; Issue: 12; December 2020 Roopam Kumar Gupta et. al. Ancient history of hospitals. the art of Ayurveda, was ‘Taxila’ or until 1197. It was devoted to Buddhist ‘TakshShila’ the ancient world’s first studies, but it also trained students in international university that existed approx. medicine. [12] 400-500 BCE to 550 CE. [9] The University was undoubtedly the first ‘Teaching Buddhist Sinhalese ‘Monastic Hospitals’ Hospital’ for Ayurvedic medicine and The art of healing was promoted in surgery that was studied for up to seven Buddhism, with Buddha himself years. This famous university not only emphasizing that health was among the attracted medical students from far off most precious goods a person can possess. places in India and from foreign countries In one iconic story in the ‘Vinaya Pitaka’, like Babylonia, Egypt, Phoenicia, Syria, the Buddha comes across a monk with Arabia, China and Greece. ‘Jivaka’, the dysentery who has been abandoned by his great physician to Gautama Buddha and an fellow monastics. After caring for the monk expert in pulse reading is also said to have with Ananda’s help, the Buddha admonishes studied Ayurveda in TakshaShila University the sangha. “Whoever would tend to me,” for seven years. he says, “should tend to the sick.” Buddha Maharshi ‘Sushruta’, often referred first taught medicine to his ‘sangha’ and to as the “Father of Plastic Surgery,” was an then he allowed monks to visit patients and influential physician in ancient India (circa to carry medicines with them as described in 600 BCE) who is still revered today for the the ‘Dulwa-smangzhi’, in Vinaya Pitaka. He critical development of Ayurvedic surgical later taught the ‘Gyud-shi’, which are the procedures and his work ‘Sushruta four medical ‘tantras’ that laid the Samhita’. [10] It describes ‘shalya tantra’, foundation of the Tibetan medical system. the practice of surgery and it is the oldest This system focuses on the direct healing of known document on surgery in the world. the patient’s body and mind with the help of The book describes more than 300 surgical the appropriate medicines, diet, behaviour procedures, including plastic reconstruction and therapies in order to pacify the result of surgery (like Rhinoplasty) and the removal mentally negative passions. The second of cataracts. It also describes over 120 rock edict of King Asoka states that surgical instruments including ‘tubular’ monasteries functioned as hospitals in early instruments (endoscopy) and more than Indian society. King Asoka established 1,120 diseases, injuries, and conditions. [11] hospitals for men and animals (3rd century However there is no mention of the BC) and the old Buddhist medicine of ‘Hospital’ with the ‘Operation Theaters’ Mahavagga (4th century BC), was where he performed his great surgeries. We practiced.