He is the best physician who is the most ingenious inspirer of hope.

Healing involves more than the correct treatment. How a person feels about their chances affects how they follow advice, how they sleep, whether they keep coming back. A doctor, or anyone caring for someone unwell, who can find honest grounds for hope gives the patient something medicine alone cannot supply.

Honest is the important word. False reassurance tends to collapse and leave people worse off. If you are supporting someone through illness, you might look for the real reasons for hope, however small, and name them. A good day, a symptom easing, a thing they are still able to enjoy all count.