As many of us know, the barber of the medieval period did a heck of a lot more than trim his customer's hair, though that was an important part of his profession (someone had to keep the churchmen appropriately tonsured). The barber saw to the wounded soldier on the battlefield and the village peasant with a toothache. The red and white striped poles (with blue added in the USA), representing blood and bandages, still advertise the historical connection between style and surgery that once existed in the trade.
The barber was a medical catch-all for the common man. Obviously the practice varied from place to place and from professional to professional, but you might visit your barber to: buy medicine, have a tooth pulled, let some blood (yay leeches), get a shave and a haircut, have that nagging hernia fixed, receive an enema, or get a limb removed (often without the benefit of anesthetic). Deaths due to blood loss and/or shock from these surgeries seemed to be relatively common, but I guess if you had a gangrenous leg, death was coming for you anyway, so why not take the chance?
Training for these medical professionals was purely practical. Barbers went through a period of apprenticeship with a master, just like the other trades. The learned doctors often remained at universities serving more as consultants and researchers than practicing medical professionals, leaving the bloody work to the other medical professionals. Surgery was often thought beneath the dignity of the doctor. Remember that the art of balancing of humors was the medical science of the time and prayer was often prescribed. Though some barbers showed great ingenuity in method and invention in their trade, a fair number are thought to have been illiterate.
With all of the fighting going on in the Middle Ages, there was plenty of opportunity for barbers to practice their arts. Being that barbers were taught in a hands-on style, it is probable that they were willing to innovate in ways that theoreticians were not. Advances were also made in natural anesthetics and antiseptics which saved many lives. Of course there was no understanding of how infections originated, so there was always a significant risk of infection with any operation.
Many barbers would travel from town to town offering their services to those in need (or in want. who really needs a leeching?). Being that barbering was a practical art, it seems likely that these practitioners consorted with others of related trades (midwives, herbalists, etc) from time to time, pooling their knowledge for the betterment of all. Some secrecy is to be expected in these businesses, but I can't imagine someone keeping to themselves a better way to remove an arrow from a wound or the right ingredients for a poultice.
Perhaps you wouldn't want to hang out at the barber shop during the Medieval period, but you'd be glad it was there. When prayer and humor balancing were being offered as prescriptions, these men (and probably a few women) were doing the real work. That doesn't mean that everything they did was positive, just often of more use than their better educated peers in the university. A visit to the barber might get your head drilled or a limb removed, but it's still a bit of a crap-shoot today when you're trying to find a new doctor, am I right?
http://www.swide.com/art-culture/history/barber-shop-pole-history/2013/09/29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barber_surgeon
http://ancientstandard.com/2011/02/18/medieval-barbers-taking-care-of-more-than-just-haircuts/
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife/people/barbersurgeons.aspx
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/history/shp/middleages/medievalsurgeryrev1.shtml
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