‘This Week in Graphic Medicine’ highlights relevant articles (and tweets) about comics in medicine published during the week (Saturday – Friday). Links are typically presented without commentary, unless clarification of relevance is necessary, with credit given to those who flagged them up where possible. So without further ado…
Matthew’s Pick of the Week…
This week’s highlight is actually a comic that was released back in December 2017, but I just discovered (or rediscovered – I honestly don’t know) it this week and feel compelled to make sure you see it as well. The comic is titled, Europe’s Waitingroom: Visiting the Refugees on Lesbos and was created by cartonist Aimée de Jongh after visiting the refugee camp Kara Tepe in October 2017 with 2 other cartoonists. I found it through The Cojo List, a periodic newsletter about nonfiction comics and it was published on Drawing the Times, a platform for publishing graphic journalism – of which there are numerous health related comics.
This comic – rightly categorized as comics journalism – shows pieces of Aimée’s experience and interactions with the people living (waiting) in Kara Tepe. In the same way that reading Rolling Blackouts by Sarah Glidden raises questions of journalistic ethics, moral imperatives, and puts you in a heightened emotional state of wanting to act but being unsure how to, this comic has a power all its own. You can read more about the decision to use the comics medium and what couldn’t be shown in this Dutch Newspaper article. [It will also provide you with links to comics created by the other two cartoonists on the trip, Judith Vanistendael and Mei-Li Nieuwland, which are equally worth reading.]
“But how is this graphic medicine” you, the reader, may now be wondering. Take a look at these panels from Aimée’s comic:
The very experience of living as a refugee, then, can be considered through the lens of medicine because of the impact trauma – in all its shapes and sizes – has on a person, both physically and mentally. Yet these people whose very lives have been uprooted are left with little-to-no access to healthcare and, in a strikingly Western way, are provided sedation and nothing more. Whether things improve, as the rest of the comic details, is often completely out of an individual refugees control. This comic forced me to ask, to my mind, a rhetorical question, but I’ll leave you with it to consider: shouldn’t we be ensuring proper access to healthcare for all refugees* as a matter of human rights?
*for all people, period. (See MK’s comic about the proposed HHS rule below for a continuation of this theme)
Articles & More…
Sutori: Graphic Medicine at MCPHS via @adlewis
Matthew’s Note: This is a live-tweet stream/commentary by A. David Lewis, who invited me to speak on Graphic Medicine at MCPHS this past week. It was a great time and some interesting questions to consider arose – take a look!
Kickstarter: It’s All For The Breast – Comic Print Run via @AlexisDraws
Kickstarter: Greenhouse via @debbiefongdraws
Event: Humanities in Medicine Symposium 2018 (in November)
Webcomic: HHS Proposed Rule Opens the Door to Fuel Bigotry via @ComicNurse
Webcomic: So I’ve Had an Abortion. Don’t Hang Me For It. via @TheNib
Webcomic: Autism Isn’t To Blame For Bad Behavior via @TheNib
Webcomic: Making the Census About Citizenship is a Terrible Idea via @TheNib
Webcomic: Working Out The Kinks by G.C. Houle via @ErikaMoen **NSFW**
Matthew’s Note: I have done a horrible job of remembering to include OJST of late. Apologies for that to all!
Scholarly (Webcomic): Annals Graphic Medicine – The Cure Is at Hand via @TheBoonDocs
Book Review: Enfermera en Apuros via @GraficaMedicina
Library: Want to improve your clinical skills? Have you tried reading comics? via @minerlibrary
Podcast: Comics Alternative Interviews: Back with John Porcellino (flagged by @AJaggers324)
Interview: Thi Bui, author of “The Best We Could Do,” on Vietnamese identity and telling her parents’ stories
Interview: “I Always Think of Comics As My First Language”: An Interview with gg
Video: A novel U.S. Army guide to future threats
Announcing the Winners of the Sixth Cartoonist Studio Prize
‘The Courage to Be Kind’ Teaches Kids About Disability and Inclusion (from 2017)
Self-Described ‘Crazy Artist’ Ellen Forney Offers ‘Rock Steady’ Advice On Staying Balanced
Real Life Comics, Advocates for Medicine and Public Health
Tweets…
Contributed to a kickstarter for this ages ago. Discovering Flanagan as a teen with CF pretty much shaped and helped articulate my burgeoning thoughts on disability and led me down the path I’m still on today. Fight sickness with sickness! pic.twitter.com/ZTP2Bb46dY
— Andrew Godfrey (@performillness) April 3, 2018
No hay que educarles con la cultura del miedo. Que la vacunas funcionan y son seguras, es una realidad#vaccines #vaccineswork via @EnsayosVacunas pic.twitter.com/AdGaa2x9hh
— Init4Health (@Init4Health) April 3, 2018
Europe’s Waitingroom Visiting the refugees on lesbos #GraphicJournalism https://t.co/3oi1a81fGm
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 3, 2018
En el ‘Laboratorio del lenguaje’ de @diariomedico:
«Ordenadores en el consultorio: ¿ayudan o estorban?»https://t.co/jR44eg5msP pic.twitter.com/U5k9UtCglQ
— Fernando A. Navarro (@navarrotradmed) March 21, 2018
My poster on the neurocognition of visual morphology in comics and emoji from #CNS2018 has now entered its second life as new couch pillows 😍 pic.twitter.com/urFf6vwq6w
— Neil Cohn (@visual_linguist) April 5, 2018
Day 30: 💛#Breakfast aka #endo & the lament of #gluten 💛 #theendophotochallenge2018 #EndometriosisAwarenessMonth @GraphicMedicine @lsmisemer @mlalanda @Halcyon_L @HalloranVivian @NoetheMatt @icpetrie @Anastasia_C_Day @ThatSomali_Girl @CtrForEndoCare #hotcrossbuns #bagels #bread pic.twitter.com/4UrLehJoOv
— Dr. Darcy Mullen (@FarmsWatson) March 30, 2018
But hold on. There are two different issues here. One is what is a comic (sequential art and the art of the invisible) and the other one (the one I’m interested on) What is graphic Medicine 😊
— medicina-grafica (@GraficaMedicina) March 31, 2018
2/2 We have great papers presented about single panel cartoons at the conferences although in general the focus has been on sequential art, maybe because so many folks are talking/writing about it. And making it.
— Ian Williams (@TheBadDr) March 31, 2018
Day 31 💛 #endo statistic 💛 Last day of #theendophotochallenge2018 #EndometriosisAwarenessMonth
HAVING LOTS OF FEELINGS @GraphicMedicine @lsmisemer @court7180 @mlalanda @Halcyon_L @HalloranVivian @NoetheMatt @icpetrie @ThatSomali_Girl @CtrForEndoCare @END0GAB @bethgodbee #love pic.twitter.com/HJovBQdn9S— Dr. Darcy Mullen (@FarmsWatson) March 31, 2018
Congratulations to alumnus @AmaniElghafri and colleagues @DrKesselheim@mjg15 @ramyasampath0 and R.Stewart for receiving the Outstanding Innovation award at the @KeckMedUSC #IMEconference2018! #GraphicMedicine #comics @HarvardMedEd https://t.co/RGu1s3pDa0
— Harvard Macy (@harvardmacy) March 31, 2018
We’re always looking for visual submissions that explore #ethics & #healthcare! Learn more here #graphicmedicine https://t.co/Rbzm6a7MfE
— AMA Journal of Ethics (@JournalofEthics) March 31, 2018
Graphic medicine takes flight | Scope Blog https://t.co/oh4CsNS41h
— Giancarlo Orsini (@orsini70) April 1, 2018
Beast Boy going against his veganism because he understands the medical benefits of being consumed by maggots is quality #GraphicMedicine content. pic.twitter.com/UTrLeSXJSW
— Thomas Maluck (@LiberryTom) April 1, 2018
A comic I made about my father’s death in 2014. Tomorrow marks the fourth anniversary. (1/3) pic.twitter.com/7RJqbFmgkV
— brinsonmarie (@brinsonmarie) April 1, 2018
(2/3) pic.twitter.com/CbadraDx0K
— brinsonmarie (@brinsonmarie) April 1, 2018
(3/3) pic.twitter.com/sVpyfF9ReN
— brinsonmarie (@brinsonmarie) April 1, 2018
Hoy es #DíaMundialDelAutismo.
Aprende sobre EL AUTISMO A TRAVÉS DEL CÓMIC.
Entrada en mi blog de julio de 2015.https://t.co/vTWygzApZ7#Autismo #Cómic #MedicinaGráfica #GraphicMedicine #PatografíaGráfica pic.twitter.com/PuO61DliKT— Blanca Mayor Serrano (@mayorserrano) April 2, 2018
Today I will learn to draw dirt for an #angelbaby burial scene. #comics #graphicmedicine #miscarriage pic.twitter.com/pT9p15ZMWQ
— Lia Hiltz (@Liahiltz) April 2, 2018
Graphic medicine manifestoの邦訳版は、2018年夏の発刊を目指して、現在、仕込み中です。ちとせプレス様に続いて、このGMを盛り上げていければと思っております。 https://t.co/6kSJ8HYKfb
— 北大路書房 (@kitaohji_syobo) April 2, 2018
“Graphic Novels as Topic” was added to MeSH as of 2018.
There are, as of today, still only *3* records tagged with it. #GraphicMedicine https://t.co/bjNLk7UWMz
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 2, 2018
What’s interesting to me here, is I have an article about the development of the PLAY built off of the comic, but I can’t find a single article discussing the development or effectiveness of the comic itself.
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 2, 2018
Do a quick digestive health check while you’re there #medicine #doctor #juniordoctors #nhs #medicalschool #comics #medicalschoollife #unicyclemedic #graphicmedicine pic.twitter.com/K5to4d5G1X
— Unicyclemedic (@unicycle_medic) April 2, 2018
Putting the Caped Crusader on the Couch #GraphicMedicine https://t.co/43OcYBxYYb
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 2, 2018
‘Graphic Medicine’ as a Mental Health Information Resource: Insights from Comics Producers: https://t.co/CrLDY8j2pl
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 2, 2018
In our graphic novel, a #wearable device made of #nanorobots brings one back to life from the dead. Can this happen IRL?! In our latest blog post, we explore the science behind nanorobots & their real life advances in medicine. #graphicnovel #STEM #science https://t.co/FcdYmhxUrS pic.twitter.com/uo4CiLCpON
— Style Engineers W.W. (@DoctorTailor) April 2, 2018
Graphic Tales of Cancer (PDF) #GraphicMedicine https://t.co/FofH4M4rHt
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 2, 2018
Looking on the Dark and Bright Side: Creative Metaphors of Depression in Two Graphic Memoirs #GraphicMedicine https://t.co/mjAhOVqyGm
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 2, 2018
No work today but sent my #1in4Zines artwork off to the printers for some #Riso action. Also got to chuck out 5 To Do lists! Feeling well productive & sh*t. Webshop coming soon…#Zines #indiecomics #1in4 #MentalHealth #SmallPress #SelfPublishing #MakeComics #GraphicMedicine pic.twitter.com/2P1OjCTsAs
— Lucy Sullivan (@LucySullivanUK) April 2, 2018
Pleased to have the great cartoonist Brian Fies joining my advanced Making Comics class tonight – talking graphic medicine & nonfiction comics. pic.twitter.com/gw3jMX2B14
— Nick Sousanis (@Nsousanis) April 2, 2018
DIY health comix workshop! With a great comics storyteller! #graphicmedicine https://t.co/9gXR5bGPUe
— Meredith Li-Vollmer (@MeredithLV) April 3, 2018
#Screening for #depression is serious business…and definitely requires a team effort. #graphicmedicine. pic.twitter.com/2TUU9thabU
— jackmaypole (@drmaypole) April 3, 2018
@graphicmedicine @GraficaMedicina @NoetheMatt @ComicNurse #endoflife #advancecaredirective #comic physicians speak to a patient’s family about #endoflifecare https://t.co/kZMGdMxNzA & the importance of knowing a loved ones wishes via @AnnalsofIM https://t.co/vssUvq7G67
— Init4Health (@Init4Health) April 3, 2018
“Our initial findings indicate that parents and caregivers of pediatric patients had significantly better understanding and recall of instructions delivered using SPIs than using WRIs” = sequential pictorial instructions (SPIs) versus written text instructions (WRIs).
— Neil Cohn (@visual_linguist) April 3, 2018
Friends Keep Friends Alive! A comic about the dangers of drunk driving produced by MADD in 1989. #GraphicMedicine https://t.co/w1GhxgcHkp
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 3, 2018
“Most basically my selections were forced by page limits; academic journals usually stipulate word counts, whereas comics use page restrictions.”
How then, should academic journals adjust requirements for comics? (Open-Question) #GraphicMedicine https://t.co/iSthCzEoDh
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 3, 2018
#graphicmedicine account of work as a rehabilitation support care worker showing the reality some people face re: life at home after discharge from the hospital: “A Spoonful of Sugar” https://t.co/3hlqXe8YVN by @MichiMathias pic.twitter.com/EFDQAqLIr9
— UMMS Library (@UMMSLibrary) April 3, 2018
Cancer Graphic Narratives (#GraphicMedicine) https://t.co/39RpV4lv2G via
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 3, 2018
Jamie McKelvie: Comic Book Page Technical Specifications https://t.co/kqBrXxWDjK #protips #comics #howto #tutorial
— P. F. Anderson (@pfanderson) April 3, 2018
Laboratory Week 2018 | DLS | CDC features superheroes! #GraphicMedicine (h/t @infobender) https://t.co/uXfeWgvkIT via @CDCgov
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 3, 2018
.@NarrativeMed .@GraphicMedicine #GraphicMedicine resonated with me when I was struggling yrs ago. Looking for recommendations of works and wisdom now. 2 family members are pretty sick. Sister is very sick with stage 4 #Cancer, another has rapidly progressing. #ALS. Tx.
— Medical Narratives (@MedNarrative) April 4, 2018
#GraphicMedicine amazes me everyday. Look at this fantastic book coming out in May.https://t.co/FDiOYTTlgo
— Ebru Ustundag (@nomadic_ebru) April 4, 2018
Comic narratives that give voice to non-normative, marginalized, and, in some cases, stigmatized stories in the arena of human reproduction. Assumptions are challenged, biases exposed, and stigma is lifted. Important contribution to Graphic Medicine. https://t.co/LDk4SV6COc
— Amruta Patil (@hathoric) April 4, 2018
And here’s my #graphicmedicine comic about care work up in the #allisnotwell exhibition til Sunday. #norwegianchurch at #cardiffbay pic.twitter.com/63TTzhtXXz
— Michi Mathias (@MichiMathias) April 4, 2018
Especially sharing this with my #graphicmedicine peeps https://t.co/OZjxAHhKEk
— Kate Deibel (@metageeky) April 5, 2018
Kym and Rhiannon had such a fabulous day meeting so many budding artists at @AlderHey. Lots of character design, sketching and belly laughs! 🌈✏🦄🙌 see you next week! #graphicmedicine #comics #arttherapy #youngpeople @BigLotteryFund #buildingstories pic.twitter.com/gQqGPnw4IN
— Comics Youth (@Comicsyouth) April 5, 2018
So proud to be a part of this panel at #moccafest2018 with @Vineshtein and @Kriota. Be there this Sunday for a stimulating chat about pathology, anatomy and BODIES pic.twitter.com/wJ5eMB3br7
— Kate Lacour (@katelacour) April 4, 2018
Comic Nurse Brings Graphic Medicine to UW-Madison https://t.co/e5lRWVJX8l
— Allison Pollock (@PollockMD) April 5, 2018
Just 1 supporter away from 90 wonderful readers of Barking my #GraphicNovel @Unbounders Please back my book & help bring it to print by pledging at.. https://t.co/4DgZLCIMMn#Comics #GraphicMedicine #mentalhealth #grief #1in4 #depression #ghoststory
— Lucy Sullivan (@LucySullivanUK) April 5, 2018
Super excited to share the poster I’ve made in @canva advertising the new #GraphicMedicine Book Club Kit we have for the next month from @nnlmner! pic.twitter.com/lKwSHdzDlT
— Rich (@richmcintyrejr) April 5, 2018
Daily life with my chronic illness can be very grim, but I feel like it’s important to show it pic.twitter.com/MHsSu0yVaC
— 🌵lizzie burd🌱 (@Linken_log) April 5, 2018
My third place certificate for the Hiram College Graphic Medicine Competition arrived, I’m shockingly proud. If you want to read the short 4 page comic on how I got to be a radiologist, it is here: https://t.co/emjOeUyVCJ pic.twitter.com/tmhd2c4phb
— Stefan Tigges (@StefanTigges) April 5, 2018
Love when #graphicmedicine & @MuthaMagazine intersect! https://t.co/qsZBgOPsUh
— Grace Farris (@gracefarris) April 5, 2018
Just got back from discussing @GraphicMedicine with folks at @MCPHS! Always enjoy sharing the field with new people and this was no different (plus it came with an intro from @adlewis, even better)!
There’s a live-tweet of my talk here from @adlewis – give it a look! https://t.co/B2PtZiV0cv
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 5, 2018
Take a look at this physician-drawn comic by Richard Stark, MD. https://t.co/ELNrzqzp7C
— Graphic Medicine (@GraphicMedicine) April 5, 2018
I really like this #comic @StefanTigges – @GraphicMedicine @GraficaMedicina @ComicNurse @mayorserrano @NoetheMatt think u will enjoy it too – becoming a #radiologist – my journey https://t.co/pMoVOZCZa3 … #graphicmedicine https://t.co/G1VTCfgcB3
— Init4Health (@Init4Health) April 5, 2018
Has the virtue of being a true story. You might like this one, also true: https://t.co/GTwvs7W2Lf
— Stefan Tigges (@StefanTigges) April 5, 2018
Great outreach from our @NoetheMatt talking about @GraphicMedicine at @MCPHS today! Look for his weekly #GraphicMedicine Blog https://t.co/UtmFlxKFub and new collection coming to #Countway! https://t.co/E3x03Zurqq
— Countway Library (@HMSCountway) April 5, 2018
No os perdáis esta serie de #cómics realizada por un #médico.
“Adventures in clinic”.https://t.co/742FX6azgw#AtenciónPrimaria #PrimaryHealthCare #MedicinaGráfica #GraphicMedicine
Vía @GraphicMedicine pic.twitter.com/Cear9NUksb— Blanca Mayor Serrano (@mayorserrano) April 6, 2018
“Diabetes debris wave”#photmontage #digitalart #collage #type1diabetes #diabetes #diabetic #patient #experience #medicine #graphicmedicine #comics #research #sciart #artscience #illustration #art pic.twitter.com/YgpuqcxPdJ
— Tony Pickering (@mrpickers) April 6, 2018
A student just shared that they were able to get funding for a small graphic medicine collection in their public library in part because of my NER webinar from last year.
Day. Made. #FridayFeeling
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 6, 2018
Parables of Care at the Western Canada Health Science Educators Conference 2018 @wchseducators https://t.co/oKBSWlomLI @wilkinspeter pic.twitter.com/PeOOmgh2tG
— Ernesto Priego (@ernestopriego) April 6, 2018
In our graphic novel, a #wearable device made of #nanorobots brings one back to life from the dead. Can this happen IRL?! In our latest blog post, we explore the science behind nanorobots & their real life advances in medicine. #graphicnovel #STEM #science https://t.co/FcdYmhxUrS pic.twitter.com/uo4CiLCpON
— Style Engineers W.W. (@DoctorTailor) April 2, 2018
What a talent…#graphicmedicine is a fascinating concept. I am familiar with #graphicrecording in teaching and at conferences, but this is new to me! Love the format makes a vivid visual impact that drives a message to a deeper level of understanding!
— Robin Cogan (@RobinCogan) April 6, 2018
For Deaf History Month, I recommend one of the best graphic novels of the past decade for young readers. Heartwarming, informative, and inspiring, this autobiographical novel belongs in the library of every devotee of children’s books. https://t.co/xLpngT3FAv #Deaf #graphicnovel pic.twitter.com/woDaVaL09s
— Anita Silvey (@anitasilvey) April 6, 2018
Work in progress: #comic abt #oldmomproblems w figures bc science. We’ve got 2 cases of plantar fasciitis & tendinitis. This baby is everything though ❤ pic.twitter.com/D5RzqTF9zA
— Cara Gormally (@C_Gormally) April 4, 2018
If I can learn to be comfortable sharing my simple cartoons/comics in a lecture slideshow, you can too. #ThursdayMotivation pic.twitter.com/hBCBCcMqQ8
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 5, 2018
I’m going to “Comics and Medicine: The Ways We Work” – see you there? https://t.co/KisOJmVcgw @Eventbrite
— Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt) April 5, 2018
Happy #Transdayofvisibility everyone, as elected goddess of the world I am here to give you all a thread of amazing trans people who you could support or at least follow.
— Alexis Sergio (@TransComics) March 31, 2018
Some great stuff this week! Did I miss something? Let me know in the comments below or tweet @NoetheMatt! Until next time…
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