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(4) Considering that 19 types of excrement are mentioned in the cures, from fly excrement to ostrich excrement, it's no surprise Egyptian doctors had a problem with disgruntled patients. They handled malpractice efficiently, though. Diordorus writes,
If they follow the rules of this law as they read them in the sacred book and yet are unable to save their patient, they are absolved from any charge; but if they go contrary to the law's prescriptions they must submit to a trial with death as the penalty.
If you're a physician and you follow the rules, all's well. But get creative with your treatments and you won't be treating anyone, unless it's in the afterlife.
(5) Just as medical doctors do today, in ancient Egypt doctors specialized. The Greek historian Herodotus writes, "The practice of medicine is so divided among them that each physician treats one disease and no more. There are plenty of physicians everywhere. Some are eye-doctors, some deal with the head, others with the teeth or the belly, and some with hidden maladies...." The Ebers Papyrus even had a section on psychiatry, directing doctors on how to diagnose and treat depression.
(6) The Egyptians had a cure for the common cold that was probably as good as anything you can find in a pharmacy today. It required a dose of the milk of a mother who had given birth to a boy, while chanting the spell, "May you flow out...who causes the seven openings in the head to ache." The Egyptians understood injuries caused by an accident, or in battle. They understood parasites and worms such as tapeworms, which they called "snakes in the belly." But for germs that couldn't be seen, Egyptians believed demons were responsible. There's nothing like a good spell to rid the body of evil spirits. The Ebers Papyrus states, "Magic is effective together with medicine. Medicine is effective together with magic." And so many medical treatments were odd combinations of science and magic.
