![A four panel comic in black and white with a green accent tone.
The first panel shows a female doctor sitting alongside her desk looking towards the viewer, hands gently resting in her lap. On her desk is a monitor, keyboard, mouse and a framed photo of a woman in glasses carrying a log. Behind the doctor is a window out onto a tree in autumn, losing its leaves. The doctor says, "So...How are things?".](https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/f465dd3d-89ff-494e-843d-ccef42f84e8f_Listening1.jpg?w=1338&auto=compress%2Cformat&rect=&q=100)
![The second panel shows the doctor listening, head slightly tilted to the side. The voice of the unseen patient says, "Well...Not too good. I feel like things are getting worse. I feel scared."](https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/d2e2cfa6-0177-41c4-abe5-073145fbb08e_Listening2.jpg?w=1338&auto=compress%2Cformat&rect=&q=100)
![The third panel shows the doctor still listening intently. The voice of the unseen patient continues, "But it's not over yet...There's always hope of a better outcome...And I'm trying to hang on to that. Trying to keep the light inside."](https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/56162768-7c7b-45e7-8430-2052898e66fd_Listening3.jpg?w=1338&auto=compress%2Cformat&rect=&q=100)
![The forth panel shows the doctor again listening, but now with a slight smile on her face. The voice of the unseen patient says, "Thank you for listening to me."](https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/dd833b1b-6cae-4ca9-bb27-6c028c6018e2_Listening4.jpg?w=1338&auto=compress%2Cformat&rect=&q=100)
Thank you for listening. © Ian Williams for Wellcome Collection.
About the artist
Ian Williams
Dr Ian Williams is a comics artist, writer and doctor who lives in Brighton. His work includes two graphic novels, ‘The Bad Doctor‘ and ‘The Lady Doctor‘, and the third of the trilogy, ‘The Sick Doctor’, will be published in 2025. He named the area of study called graphic medicine, and is the creator and co-editor of the Graphic Medicine website. He is founder of the not-for-profit Graphic Medicine International Collective and co-author of the Eisner-nominated ‘Graphic Medicine Manifesto‘. He has produced comic strips for the Guardian newspaper, and numerous organisations, including Wellcome Collection.