[The origins of medical teaching]

Ancient medicine is characterized by the absence of an institutional background; Greek and Roman physicians do not study in formalized schools, and medical knowledge is mainly transmitted from father to son in a strict family relationship. In what kind of social and cultural context does an ancient physician learn the principles of medical techne? Which are the standards adopted by physicians to choose their students? And, in absence of a real scholar training, in which way a young man can prepare himself to became a doctor?