Healing magic



"Harry's nose felt very hot, then very cold. He raised a hand and felt it gingerly. It seemed to be mended."

- Tonks fixes Harry Potter's broken nose

Healing magic is a branch of magic devoted to improving the physical and mental condition. There are many different types of spells in this branch of magic, that have a variety of effects. There are also a vast group of potions that are dedicated to healing as well. Witches and wizards who specialise in this area of magic are known as healers.

Healing spells
A Healing spell is one of the seven known spell types, distinguished by their capacity to magically improve the physical condition of the living object — it is a branch of Healing magic. In 1996, Harry Potter allowed Nymphadora Tonks to heal his broken nose, though he had been intending to see Madam Pomfrey, whom he privately felt to be more competent with Healing spells than Tonks.

Medication
Magical medication normally relates to healing potions, though there are other medications that exists too (such as chocolate). They are described below:

Chocolate
Chocolate has special properties. Not only does it make a wonderful treat, but it also serves as a particularly powerful antidote for the chilling effect produced by contact with Dementors and other particularly nasty forms of Dark Magic.

Phoenix tears
Phoenix tears have immense healing powers. It is the only known cure for basilisk venom. It is also capable of reviving a person from any injury, even if the person is at the brink of death, similar to unicorn blood (without the cursed side-effects).

Occupations
Wizard doctors are known as Healers and Mediwizards. While small infirmaries exist, such as the Hogwarts Hospital Wing run by Madame Pomfrey, the central establishment in England for this purpose is St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, where various magical diseases, such as "Dragon Pox", "spattergroit", and "Vanishing Sickness" are treated.

As Madam Poppy Pomfrey is said to be a matron, there may be different ranks of nurses like there is in the Muggle world. For example: matron, sister, staff nurse, nurse, and student nurse.

Illness and disability
Wizards have the power to correct or override 'mundane' nature, but not 'magical' nature. Therefore, a wizard could catch anything a Muggle might catch, but they can cure all of it; they can also comfortably survive a scorpion sting that might kill a Muggle, whereas they might die if bitten by a Venomous Tentacula. Similarly, bones broken in non-magical accidents such as falls or fist fights can be mended by magic.

The consequences of curses or backfiring magic could be serious, permanent or life-threatening. This is the reason that Gilderoy Lockhart, victim of his own mangled Memory Charm, has permanent amnesia, why the Longbottoms remain permanently damaged by magical torture, and why Mad-Eye Moody had to resort to a wooden leg and a magical eye when the originals were irreparably damaged in a wizards' battle; Luna Lovegood's mother, Pandora, died when one of her own experimental spells went wrong, and Bill Weasley is irreversibly scarred after his meeting with Fenrir Greyback.

Thus it can be seen that while wizards have an enviable head start over Muggles in dealing with the flu, and all manner of serious injuries, they have to deal with problems that Muggles never face. Not only is the Muggle world free of such perils as Devil's Snare and Blast-Ended Skrewts, the Statute of Secrecy has also kept Muggles free from contact with any wizard who could pass on Dragon Pox (as the name implies, originally contracted by wizards working closely with Peruvian Vipertooths) or Spattergroit.

Remus Lupin's affliction is the magical version of the Muggle HIV infection, with the attendant stigma. The Wolfsbane Potion Severus Snape brews him is akin to the antiretroviral that will keep him from the developing the 'full-blown' version of lycanthropy.

Limitations

 * Severe mental damage, such as improperly cast Memory Charms and insanity, may be irreversible.
 * Certain dark arts, such as body parts severed by Sectumsempra and werewolf-inflicted injuries, cannot be fully healed, and will leave scars at the very least.
 * No true cure exists for lycanthropy as to date.
 * Attempt to use the Mending Charm on flesh wounds can cause serious scarring.
 * Healing magic cannot bring the dead back to life.

Appearances

 * PS undefined
 * PS F
 * PS G