Harry Potter and the Wizards' Health Care System

Wouldn't it be nice if we lived in a world where chocolate is offered as the best cure all?! And we referred to our medical professionals as "healers" rather than "doctors" — the latter taking on a more negative tone, or implying a temporary "fix" rather than a more permanent resolution to health problems. As we explore further the world that J.K. Rowling created in her series of Harry Potter books, we realize that she may have given more attention to health and health care than some of our elected officials.

The Hospital Wing at Hogwarts' School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

From Book 1, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, we learn that the incidence of classroom injuries at Hogwarts is high enough to warrant an entire hospital wing on the school grounds. The first example of a playground injury we see comes — not surprisingly — from flying lessons as Neville Longbottom is thrown from his wayward broom. Class is dismissed. Neville is carried off to see Madame Pomfrey, the school nurse.

Several students end up in the hospital wing in Book 2 (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) having been attacked by a resident basilisk. No fear, alternative medicine comes to the rescue as the mandrake root is prescribed. Interestingly, this root is also used as a cure for illness in another fantasy flick, Pan's Labyrinth. In each case, the mandrake root takes on the form of a human infant.

Hogwarts' hospital wing remains a key setting throughout the series as Harry himself is injured several times while playing Quidditch, the sport of choice for magical folk. One such convalescence, I might add, came about at the hands of a teacher who accidentally removed Harry's arm bone while trying to heal it. "I can mend bones in a second," cries Madam Pomfrey, "but growing them back … will be painful." The statement is interesting in itself, as apparently there's no magic spell to alleviate pain.

Come to think of it, there are an alarming number of references to injuries that befall students as they learn their craft, under the supervision of Hogwarts' finest teachers. There are accidental burning of eyebrows, potions that go awry, and the (self-inflicted) regurgitation of slugs. It's not entirely clear where the diagnostic line is drawn determining which ailments get treated by magic and which are resolved by counter curses. Clearly astigmatism cannot be treated by the wave of a wand, as the bespectacled hero demonstrates. Casts and slings are still required for bone fractures, such as the ones used for Ron's broken leg in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban or the broken arm Draco received from an intolerant Hippogriff in the same book. In the latter, class is dismissed, and the student carried off to the hospital wing. cFor those of you interested, within the first six installments of the series (at the time of this writing), there are nearly 30 references to various characters being injured on the grounds of Hogwarts'. This does not include (Harry's) malnutrition or other injuries sustained by students during sports, on field trips or while serving detention that are implied throughout the books. It's enough to make any parent reconsider enrollment regardless of how gifted a child may be.

St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries

In Book 5, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, we are introduced to the inner workings of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, where Mr. Weasley is admitted after — well, let's just call it a nasty snake bite.

At St. Mungo's, healers are assigned to apply their magical skills and knowledge of spells and potions. In rare cases, they may resort to "complementary medicine" (as they refer to our "muggle" techniques). There are references to taking potions as a regimen, but not talk of prescriptions. No talk of insurance, forms or payment for medical services either.

J.K. Rowling takes care to describe the various hospital wings. There is a wing devoted to Artifact Accidents; Creature-Induced Injuries, which includes the "Dangerous" Dai Llewellyn Ward for Serious Bites; Magical Bugs and Diseases; Contagious Maladies; Potion and Plant Poisoning; and Spell Damage, including the Janus Thickey Ward with long-term residents that are victims of permanent spell damage. There's also a Visitors' Tea Room and Hospital Shop.

Heroes

As many of us know, the struggle of living can leave visible and indelible signs on a body. Even on that of a wizard. Harry's scar marks him as the "boy who lived" and he takes a certain amount of pride in the marks left from his sadistic detentions with Professor Umbridge. Professors Moody and Dumbledore both display the physical signs of their battles against evil forces. Moody even wears a prosthetic leg and eye, so we can assume that there are no magical cures for extreme bodily damage or loss of limb.

Indeed, loss of life itself is not preventable in J.K. Rowling's world. Death is as much a part of the wizarding world as it is our own. Certainly, the loss of Harry's parents, Cedric Diggory, Sirius Black, Dumbledore, and other key characters are central to Harry Potter's story — a story that is tragic and heroic. Perhaps this is the ultimate message in the books, and the closest parallel to our own oft too real world. Special talents or no, it's the gravity of the obstacles — physical, emotional and spiritual ailments — we overcome that measures us as human beings. After all, there can be no heroes if there is no tragedy.