Overview

Medieval doctors flattered to deceive, although there were developments that gave the appearance of progress:

• Schools of medicine were set up in Universities such as Bologna and Salerno, and there were lectures in anatomy.
• New writings of Muslim doctors (such as Rhazes) became available.
• Doctors debated the best methods of treating disease.
• Padua University (alone) insisted that doctors visited the sick during their training.

A French manuscript illumination from Guy de Chauliac's 'Chirurgia Magna' of 1363, showing a dissection at the Faculty of Montpellier

These signs, however, were deceiving . For example:

• The anatomy 'lectures' consisted only of the doctor reading from a book while a prosector pointed to parts of the body.
• The ancients were held unquestioningly as the true authorities, any debates was seen merely as an opportunity to practice the art of arguing.
• Doctors had a terrible reputation. During the Black Death, "...doctors were useless and indeed shameful as they dared not visit the sick for fear of becoming infected" wrote Guy de Chauliac.