SYRIA: The Arab world's first medical school is renovated

Record ID: 278592

  • Title: SYRIA: The Arab world's first medical school is renovated
  • Date: 23rd January 2011
  • Summary: DAMASCUS, SYRIA (JANUARY 18, 2011) (REUTERS) STREET IN THE OLD CITY OF DAMASCUS WHERE THE BIMARISTAN AL-NOURI IS LOCATED SIGN AT ENTRANCE OF MUSEUM THE HALL OF THE BIMARISTAN MODELS OF MEDICAL STUDENTS SIGN READING "THE ARAB DOCTOR IBN AL-NAFIS AL-DIMASHQI 1211-1288" BUST OF IBN AL-NAFIS RULES OF MEDICAL CONDUCT AT THE BIMARISTAN AL-NOURI SIGN READING "CLINICAL EX
  • Embargoed: 7th February 2011 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Syrian Arab Republic
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Health,Education
  • Reuters ID: LVA68Z6VJT2IOCR70DTSYG1V8SAF
  • Story Text: The ancient Bimaristan al-Nouri, which now houses the Museum of Medicine and Science in the Arab World, stands at the heart of the old city of Damascus.
    Hailed as one of the most important medical monuments in the region, the Bimaristan, meaning "hospital" in Persian, was built by Sultan Nur al-Din Zangi in 1154. It was at first a hospital and later the first teaching medical school in the East.
    The medieval structure, now open as a museum in the al-Hariqa quarter of the old city of Damascus, has undergone renovation with the backing of Syrian authorities, in a move aimed at attracting more foreign tourists.
    At the height of its popularity, the Bimaristan was considered one of the most advanced medical institutions of its time and drew students from all over the world.
    This remarkable building is reported to have treated patients until the 19th century.
    Today, the Bimaristan is divided into four halls, where a range of collected instruments and manuals used in the Arab world of medicine are displayed, including bottles of medicinal herbs, books, measuring equipment, surgical contraptions for dentistry and operations as well as astronomical devices.
    Despite its deep roots in medical history and its impressive displays, the Bimaristan is not well known to tourists. This has partly been attributed to the fact that the Bimaristan does not appear in the sightseeing schedule of the Ministry of Tourism.
    "Large groups of tourists come here because they have heard of it. It is a medical museum. This means it is not like the other museums. Because it is not known, it needs to be well promoted, such as putting it on the schedule of the Ministry of Tourism, or promoting it through street signs. There aren't any street signs that point to the Bimaristan, street signs from the Umayyad Mosque, or from the Hamidiyya (souq) or the Hariqa. We should have street signs, and most importantly it should be better promoted," said Michline Abu Sekke, the director of the museum.
    In the years during which the Bimaristan thrived, Arabs were pioneers in medical advancement. Europe paled in comparison and Western medical knowledge utilised translations of Arabic texts into Latin for progress. Arabs were the first to develop an alcohol based anaesthetic for inhalation. The solution contained opium, belladonna and hashish and could be stored over long periods of time.
    The Bimaristan is thought to be one of the first establishments to use music as a treatment method for mental disorders.
    "There was a little sentence about the fact that here the doctors were treating people for free and they would send them back with little money to help them recover from their illness. And also they were treating, I think, mental diseases with music and that's something that caught my attention," said one French tourist after touring the museum.
    Medieval Syria was a hub for business and tourism in the ancient world. Roman emperors came from Syria and the Umayyad dynasty made Damascus a cosmopolitan capital for an Arab empire stretching to Spain.
    Diplomatic missions opened in Aleppo as early as the 13th century.
    Tourism in Syria is growing despite a lack of investment in tourism schemes in the country. The Syrian Minister of Tourism Saad Allah Agha al-Qalaa has said that the growth percentage of tourism for the year 2010 reached 136 percent.
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