Nursing in ancient Egypt

The idea of ​​healing and nursing the sick exists in the medical  papyri from ancient Egypt, which are the most valuable source of knowledge of the ancient Egyptians:

Cairo Papyrus
It dates back from the 1900s BC, and it is currently located at University College London. It was discovered by Sir William Mathew Flinders Petrie in 1889 in poor condition in the ruins of the Pharaoh's Palace in Cairo. It is a comprehensive document on ;  women's diseases , describes methods for  pregnancy determination ,  fetal sex determination . There is also a section of  veterinary medicine .

Smith's Papyrus
It is housed at the New York Academy of Medicine. It was acquired in 1862 by a young American Egyptologist, Edwin Smith. This papyrus allegedly comes from the same tomb in the Theban necropolis as Ebers' papyrus and dates back to the beginning of the 18th dynasty. It is a copy of an older papyrus, as the grammatical editing of the text suggests. The total length is 4.68 m, width 33 cm and has 12 sheets. It dates from about 1700 BC, but its origin is much older, it is believed that the document found is a copy and the original comes from Imhotep, a prominent physician. This papyrus introduces the  textbook traumatology  and discusses the  surgical care of head, nose, chin, ear, lip, bone and spine injuries . Each patient observation builds on a  precise and unchanging plan : a clinical description, determination of the final diagnosis statement in terms of prognosis, and recommended treatment.



Eber's Papyrus
It dates from 1500 BC It was discovered in 1862 in Thebes by George Ebers (1837-1898), who bought it from an Egyptian. Papyrus is 20 meters long and 30 cm wide, containing 108 pages with 20-22 lines. The text dates back to the 9th year of King Amenhotep I (approximately 1550 BC). It is safe to say that this is a copy of an older work from the Old Kingdom. It contains 875 different recipes without logical sorting. It deals with  diseases of children, skin, ears, eyes, women . There are also "texts of prayers for the invocation of evil spirits", causing obsession and the first mentions of "mental disorders". It is the most important and longest papyrus ever stored in the library of the University of Leipzig. This papyrus mentions the "care" of the mentally ill, which was cared for in the temples through various exercises, walks in beautiful gardens, the sick also took part in rides on the Nile. Listening to music, dancing, entertainment was also common.

Other papyri
There are other medical papyri -  'London Papyrus' ,  'Berlin Papyrus' ,  'Leyden Witch Papyrus (magic formulas)'  and others.

Characteristics of care in Egypt
According to preserved documents, there were doctors in the Old Kingdom - "physicists" who were educated in medical schools. Treatment and care of patients consisted of the administration of diuretics, laxatives, drugs against intestinal parasites. Cosmetic ointments were applied. In the Egyptian pharmacy, there were medicines still used today - wormwood, poppy, castor oil, animal fats, etc. Suppositories were also applied, intestinal and vaginal lavages were performed, and a fumigant was used extensively. E.g. it was smoked at the time of delivery to strengthen the uterine contractions. The women sat down on a pot in which a certain means was heated. The doctors prepared the medicines themselves. No nurses have assisted doctors (the literature does not yet prove their existence), but they are documented by "bandages", healers, masseurs, lay healers.