Medieval Public Health Flashcards
why were mortality rates higher in towns than in villages/ the country side?
in towns people lived close to waste industry and other people so disease spread more easily
there were also fiers livestock (and waste ) human waste rubbish in the streets
people also bathed in the streets and rubbish was placed next to wells
why was there a lack of public health in the middles ages
Lack of Goverment inerest as they were weaker and lessed organised scince the romans left
there was little knowledge of germs
and wars were seen as more improtant
there was a lack of technology to provide better facilites
there was little building regulation so sanitation was limited and overcrownding rife
floors were covered in rushes that were realy changed
No zoneing- butchers were right next to residential houses
rubbished was never cleared from streets it was just left to pile up
talk to me about coventry!
the streets and houses had to be cleaned once a week
waste was put in one of 5 designated waste sited outside of the city walls there was a different site for each different kind of waste
dumping waste in the river was banned nine times between 1421 and 1475
attempts were made to prevent butchers putting waste in the river to prevent flooding
these measures were hard to enforce so had limkted effect
what happned in 1421 in coventry
the mayor’s proclimation required that everyone has to clean the front of their house every saturday or face a 12 penny fine
what was recorded in 1420 in coventry
waste collection services when the council gave permission to william oteley to colllect 1 penny from each reident
what health precautions did medival people take?
wealthy people tokk care to keep clean and they belived (we know this beacuse it said in childcare books) you should brush your teeth and use napikins to blow their noses
we know poeple tried to bathe as their are records of people drowning in rivers when bathing and scolding themselves when bathing indoors
what did the council of .ondon do to kepp the city clean?
employed raikers to clean out cess pits and pick up rubbish/ waste and during the balck death a lord’s mayor’s order was issued to clean up the rubbish (1348)
how were conditons better in medival monistires?
monstries were often in suclued places- so they did not often get diseases. They were often near rivers and had elaborate pipe systems to deliver water wash basins and filering systems to remove impruites E.g canturbry cathedral water piped through 5 setteling tanks to purify it
they had stesses on washing bodies and clothes (e’g feet washed 2wice a week) routines of cleanilness
waste water was empited down river
they learnt from anchient times that clean water had to be separte from clean water
monisties were also wealthy allowing them to build good santiation facilites
what were hositals like in the renaissance?
as church was a big part of healthcare when hernery 8th shut doen monistries also cloes hospitals some were taken over by town councils for exapmle alms- houses to care for the poor. other hospitals became charity hospitals funded by he wealthy (eg ‘guy’s’ hospital in london
hospitas had resident phsicians surgeons and nursing sisters. the latter gave herbal remidies.
untained nursing careers did day to day careing eg washing
people with infectoius diseases not perimtted to hospitals.
give me some stats about take renaissence hospitals!
by 1800 al large towns had a hospital althoug some bigger due to better funding by local rich people.
hospitals in london like Guy’s and St. bartholemew’s could treat up to 20,00 people in a year
