Gendered bodies: A graphic medicine commentary.

This final commentary, in comic format, frames this special issue using Graphic Medicine methodologies to explore broader themes and meanings related to the scientific study of gender and health. Comics can be seen as a way to introduce complex human narratives and as an exploratory tool to ask broader social-contextual and ethical questions about health and medicine. This piece is also constructed through the lens of queer scholarship, which, together with the comics format, provides opportunities to build more embodied, complicated narratives about gender, sexuality and health. Most importantly, comics are used as a modality to tell compelling narratives about how individuals, rather than populations, may be impacted by biomedical conceptualizations of gender and health. The commentary includes a series of graphic narratives containing hypothetical stories and cases: stories of how individuals may be harmed within healthcare systems by rigid framings of gender, sex and sexuality, and stories about how gender socialization may impact health in subtle ways. These narratives furthermore examine the inextricable link between gender and power, illustrating how overt and covert manifestations of power may shape a person's health over the life course. Finally, the piece explores how expansive views of gender may contribute to positive health care experiences. The intention of this piece is to nudge scientific researchers and clinicians alike to approach the topic of gender, sexuality and health with nuance and curiosity.

Nursing students' reactions to a graphic novel: A multi-national descriptive qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Undergraduate nursing programme teaching and learning methods and content must evolve to meet the changing evidence base, healthcare context and needs of new generations of nurses. Art-based and narrative methods have been employed to help student nurses explore complex issues, including patient experiences of health and illness, person-centred care and social determinants of health. One creative visual teaching tool is the graphic novel. However, little is known about student perceptions of graphic novels and how they facilitate student nurses' reflection, engagement and learning. Gaining such an understanding may be of especial value for teaching Generation Z students who are used to interacting with complex visual imgery and prefer alternatives to text-heavy documents. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to explore student nurses responses to Vivian, and graphic novels in general, as teaching resources in undergraduate nursing curricula in England, Sweden, and Aotearoa New Zealand. DESIGN: A social constructionist critical framework informing a descriptive qualitative study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Undergraduate nursing students in Sweden, England, and Aotearoa New Zealand. METHODS: Data were collected using focus groups and semi-structured interviews. Braun & Clark's method for thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. RESULTS: Three themes were developed: 1) reflections on clinical practice, including reflections on palliative care, holistic care for older people and communication between patients and staff; 2) graphic novels' usefulness as a teaching resource, in which students regarded them as an alternative way to learn; and 3) Vivian as a form of the graphic novel. CONCLUSION: The graphic novel Vivian helped nursing students engage in critical reflection and with challenging theoretical concepts. It, and graphic novels in general offer an alternative to print-based texts, which may heighten their appeal to Generation Z learners.

A Building Block of Empathy: Establishing a Graphic Medicine Collection in an Academic Health Sciences Library.

To help address the well-being of the campus and contribute to empathy building amongst students pursuing careers as healthcare providers, an academic health sciences library built a graphic novel collection focused on comics that discuss medical conditions and health-related topics. The collection contains the experiences of patients, providers, and caregivers. The reader-friendly format of graphic novels provides an easy entry point for discussing empathy with health professions faculty and students. The collection has been used in the classroom during library instruction sessions, with the idea of integrating it within the curriculum.

"Inside Out of Mind": Alternative Realities, Dementia and Graphic Medicine.

Graphic medicine, an interdisciplinary field situated at the crossroads of comics and healthcare, operates as a medium through which the intricate nature of experiences with illness can be articulated, challenging orthodox medical dogmatism in an engaging and accessible way. Combining the affordances of comics and the narrative power of storytelling, graphic medicine elucidates the socio-cultural stigmatization of dementia influenced by a multitude of discourses. Diverging from existing discourses that depict individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) as zombies, brain-dead, or empty shells, graphic memoirs reconstruct these reductive notions and represent them as imaginative, productive, and perceptive. Taking these cues, the present paper close reads some sections of Dana Walrath's (2016) Aliceheimer's: Alzheimer's Through the Looking Glass in order to demonstrate how graphic medicine reconceptualizes the preeminent hallucinatory experiences of her AD-afflicted mother, Alice, as visions. Walrath deploys collage art to epitomize Alice's ordeal with AD. In particular, Walrath deploys thought-provoking fragments from Lewis Caroll's Alice in Wonderland, strategically to proximate Alice's experiences with AD and tackle the problem of dementia and sociality. Additionally, the paper explores how the text fosters interdependence, respect, and trust to recognize and restore Alice's personhood. The paper concludes by discussing how Aliceheimer's operates as an alternative paradigm beyond the confines of biomedical and cultural models of dementia through the use of lexical puissance.

Câncer materno: a compreensão da criança e suas representações / Maternal cancer: the child's understanding and its representations / Cáncer materno: comprensión del niño y sus representaciones

O câncer é uma doença crônico-degenerativa, que tem como uma de suas principais características a capacidade de invadir tecidos e órgãos do corpo, favorecendo o crescimento desordenado de células. É uma doença que impacta fortemente a pessoa enferma e todos à sua volta, incluindo sua família e seus amigos. A partir desse cenário, este trabalho visou compreender a visão da criança e o impacto emocional sofrido diante do diagnóstico de câncer da mãe. Buscou-se avaliar, a partir de ferramentas lúdicas e do desenho-estória, o entendimento da criança em relação ao processo de adoecimento materno, tomando como base o referencial psicanalítico para reconhecer como ela lidou com a situação. Participaram desta pesquisa uma mulher de 39 anos com diagnóstico de câncer em remissão e seu filho de 9 anos. Os resultados demonstraram que o adoecimento materno causou impactos emocionais significativos e assustadores para o infante, gerando fantasias irreais relacionadas ao câncer e a si próprio. Dessa forma, considera-se de fundamental importância o cuidado estendido aos familiares do indivíduo doente, a fim de que se tenha um olhar a todos que sofrem diante desse contexto.(AU)

Cancer is a chronic-degenerative disease that has as one of its main characteristics the ability to invade tissues and organs of the body, favoring the disordered cell growth. It is a disease that strongly impacts the sick person and everyone around them, including their family and friends. Based on this scenario, this work aimed to understand the child's view and the emotional impact suffered in the face of the mother's cancer diagnosis. It sought to evaluate, with ludic tools and drawing history, the child's understanding about the mother's illness process, based on the psychoanalytic framework to recognize how they deal with the situation. A 39-year-old woman diagnosed with cancer, in remission, and her 9-year-old son participated in this research. The results showed that the maternal illness caused significant and frightening emotional impacts for the infant, creating unrealistic fantasies related to cancer and to himself. Thus, the care extended to the sick individual's family and to the relatives is considered of fundamental importance, to give a complete care for all those who suffer in this context.(AU)

El cáncer es una enfermedad crónico-degenerativa, que tiene como una de sus principales características la capacidad de invadir tejidos y órganos, favoreciendo un crecimiento desordenado de las células. Enfermedades como esta impactan fuertemente a la persona que está enferma y a todos los que la rodean, incluidos familiares y amigos. Considerando esta situación, este estudio tuvo como objetivo comprender la percepción de un niño y el impacto emocional que sufrió ante el diagnóstico del cáncer vivido por su madre. Se pretendió evaluar, utilizando herramientas lúdicas y de dibujo-cuento, la comprensión del niño al proceso de enfermedad materna, buscando reconocer cómo el niño manejó este proceso a partir del referencial teórico psicoanalítico. En esta investigación participaron una mujer de 39 años diagnosticada de cáncer en remisión y su hijo de 9 años. Los resultados mostraron que los impactos emocionales de la enfermedad materna fueron significativos y aterradores para el infante, generando fantasías irreales relacionadas con el cáncer y él mismo. De esta forma, el cuidado extendido a la familia del individuo que está enfrentando esta enfermedad es importante para promover una atención integral a quienes la padecen en este contexto.(AU)

Construção e validação de História em Quadrinhos para crianças com leucemia linfoide aguda / Construcción y validación de Cómics a niños con leucemia linfocítica aguda / Construction and validation of Comics at children with acute lymphocytic leukemia

Resumo Introdução O câncer tem impacto na vida das crianças e seus familiares. As Histórias em Quadrinhos podem ser uma estratégia de fortalecer o vínculo e a comunicação entre profissional/paciente/família. Objetivo Desenvolver e validar um material instrucional/educativo, no formato de Histórias em Quadrinhos, voltada para crianças hospitalizadas com leucemia linfóide aguda. Metodologia Estudo metodológico desenvolvido em nove etapas: elaboração do projeto de pesquisa; definição e seleção do conteúdo; adaptação da linguagem; inclusão de ilustrações; construção de um material piloto; validação do material; layout; impressão final e disponibilização. A validação ocorreu com 10 especialistas entre março e maio de 2022, utilizando-se o Instrumento de Validação de Conteúdo Educativo em Saúde. Resultados Foram elaboradas 5 Histórias em Quadrinhos, com 6 personagens principais, sendo necessárias 63 horas de trabalho. Elas foram divididas por temáticas (distúrbios gastrointestinais; cistite hemorrágica; problemas relacionados a autoestima e autoimagem; risco de infecção e dor óssea) que obtiveram Índice de Validade de Conteúdo global satisfatório entre 0,78 e 0,87. Conclusões e implicações para a prática As histórias em quadrinhos podem ser utilizadas como fonte atrativa e confiável de informações sobre a doença, servindo como apoio às informações durante a internação hospitalar e o preparo para alta.

Resumen Introducción El cáncer tiene un impacto en la vida de los niños y sus familias. Los cómics pueden ser una estrategia para fortalecer el vínculo y la comunicación entre profesional/paciente/familia. Objetivo Desarrollar y validar un material didáctico/educativo, en formato de Historietas, dirigido a niños hospitalizados con leucemia linfocítica aguda. Metodología Estudio metodológico desarrollado en nueve etapas: elaboración del proyecto de investigación; definición y selección de contenidos; adaptación lingüística; inclusión de ilustraciones; construcción de un material piloto; validación del material; disposición; impresión final y disponibilidad. La validación se realizó con 10 especialistas entre marzo y mayo de 2022, utilizando el Instrumento de Validación de Contenido de Educación en Salud. Resultados Se crearon 5 Comics, con 6 personajes principales, requiriendo 63 horas de trabajo. Fueron divididos por temas (trastornos gastrointestinales; cistitis hemorrágica; problemas relacionados con la autoestima y la autoimagen; riesgo de infección y dolor óseo) que obtuvieron un Índice de Validez de Contenido global satisfactorio entre 0,78 y 0,87. Conclusiones e implicaciones para la práctica Los cómics pueden ser utilizados como una fuente atractiva y confiable de información sobre la enfermedad, apoyando información durante la hospitalización y preparación para el alta.

Abstract Introduction Cancer has an impact on the lives of children and their families. Comics can be a strategy to strengthen the bond and communication between professional/patient/family. Objective To develop and validate an instructional/educational material, in the format of Comics, aimed at children hospitalized with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Methodology Methodological study developed in nine stages: preparation of the research project; content definition and selection; language adaptation; inclusion of illustrations; construction of a pilot material; validation of the material; layout; final printing and availability. Validation took place with 10 specialists between March and May 2022, using the Health Education Content Validation Instrument. Results 5 Comics were created, with 6 main characters, requiring 63 hours of work. They were divided by themes (gastrointestinal disorders; hemorrhagic cystitis; problems related to self-esteem and self-image; risk of infection and bone pain) that obtained a satisfactory global Content Validity Index between 0.78 and 0.87. Conclusions and implications for practice Comics can be used as an attractive and reliable source of information about the disease, supporting information during hospitalization and preparation for discharge.

Best of Graphic Medicine-The 2023 Graphic Medicine International Collective Awards.

This Arts and Medicine feature reviews 4 health-related graphic medicine (comic) projects judged as the best of 2022 by the Graphic Medicine International Collective.

Afasias e construção de sentido: estudo com foco em história em quadrinhos / Aphasia and construction of meaning: study focused on comic strips

RESUMO Objetivo observar, na linguagem em afasia de sujeitos adultos, a constituição de sentidos, considerando a (re)organização enunciativa na leitura e na escrita. Métodos pesquisa qualitativa com método aplicado e exploratório e perspectiva de análise enunciativa sobre a linguagem, tendo as noções de forma e sentido como base analítica. Foi realizada uma atividade com três sujeitos com afasia (Bir, Cr e Aul), integrantes do Grupo Interdisciplinar de Convivência (GIC), formado por participantes com e sem afasia. Tal atividade consistiu em (re)organizar quadrinhos de uma história, visando constituir sentido, uma vez que a leitura/escrita de textos são habilidades comumente comprometidas nas afasias. Resultados a categoria de tempo crônico mostra-se fundante para elaboração das narrativas dos sujeitos com afasia. Entretanto, eles encontraram formas distintas de sustentação de sentidos, mas sempre atrelados a experiências provenientes da relação entre homem e mundo. Conclusão as narrativas foram organizadas/construídas pelos participantes, tendo por base as imagens (base formal) - uma vez comprometida a habilidade de leitura de textos verbais. Bir, Cr e Aul usaram o tempo crônico como eixo organizacional de suas narrativas e suas histórias em quadrinhos, demonstrando que promovem leitura e escrita ao se considerar o viés enunciativo de análise da linguagem.

ABSTRACT Purpose to observe , in the language of aphasic adult subjects, the constitution of meanings, considering the enunciative (re)organization in reading and writing. Methods qualitative research with applied and exploratory methods and a perspective of enunciative analysis on language, using the notions of form and meaning as analytical base. From an activity performed by three subjects with aphasia (Bir, Cr and Aul), members of the Interdisciplinary Coexistence Group (GIC), formed by participants with and without aphasia, which constituted of (re)organizing the panels (frames) of a comic strip, in order to constitute meaning - since the reading/writing of texts are skills that are commonly affected in aphasia. Results the chronic time category shows itself to be fundamental for the elaboration of the narratives of the subjects with aphasia, however they found different ways of sustaining meanings, but always linked to experiences arising from the relationship between man and world. Conclusion the narratives were organized/constructed by the participants, having the images as a base (formal base) - since the ability to read verbal texts is impaired. Bir, Cr and Aul used chronic time as an organizational axis of their narratives and their comic strips show that these subjects with aphasia promote reading and writing when considering enunciative bias of language analysis.

Do ouvido ao narrado: interlocução terapeuta-sujeito com afasia em atividade com história em quadrinhos / From heard to narrated: therapist-subject with aphasia interlocution in an activity with comic books

RESUMO Objetivo Analisar a interlocução terapeuta-sujeito com afasia no processo de interpretação e organização de história em quadrinhos. Métodos Estudo transversal, de natureza qualitativa. Os dados coletados foram de situações enunciativas audiogravadas e apresentadas descritivamente por quadros de interlocução (A1-T1) e (A2-T2), registrando atividade com Histórias em Quadrinhos (HQ), realizada em encontro do Grupo Interdisciplinar de Convivência da instituição, do qual participaram sujeitos com e sem afasia. Analisou-se a interlocução entre duas terapeutas em formação (T1 e T2) e dois sujeitos com afasia (A1 e A2). Resultados As interlocuções entre A1-T1 e A2-T2, ocorridas durante o processo de organização das HQ, evidenciaram posicionamentos diferentes das terapeutas, no que tange ao ouvido e ao narrado. A1 foi reconhecida por T1 como sujeito de linguagem, à medida que a terapeuta promoveu a disjunção, ou seja, encaminhou A1 à condição de locutor; o mesmo fato não ocorreu com A2 e T2, pois o primeiro não foi reconhecido como sujeito de linguagem, já que T2 manteve-se em conjunção, não conferindo lugar de fala a A2. Conclusão A enunciação benvenistiana configura-se como recurso teórico-metodológico para análise e intervenção clínica junto a sujeitos com afasia. O contexto de convivência grupal impõe-se como lócus de cuidado e formativo para as diferentes áreas de atenção às pessoas com afasia, articulando, interdisciplinarmente, aspectos da enunciação à prática terapêutica.

ABSTRACT Purpose To analyze the therapist-subject with aphasia interlocution in the process of interpretation and organization of comics. Methods Cross-sectional study of a qualitative nature. The data are from audio-recorded enunciative situations and presented descriptively by interlocution charts (A1-T1) and (A2-T2), registering activity with Comics, held at a meeting of the Interdisciplinary Group of Coexistence (GIC) in which subjects with and without aphasia participate. The interlocution between two therapists in training (T1 and T2) and two subjects with aphasia (A1 and A2) is analyzed. Results: The interlocutions between A1-T1 and A2-T2, which occurred during the process of organization of the comic, show different positions of the therapists regarding the ear and the narrated. A1 is recognized by T1 as a subject of language as the therapist promotes disjunction, that is, it directs A1 to the condition of speaker; the same does not occur with A2 and T2, because the former is not recognized as a subject of language, since T2 remains in conjunction, not giving A2 speaking space. Conclusion Benvenistian enunciation is configured as a theoretical and methodological resource for analysis and clinical intervention with subjects with aphasia; the context of group coexistence imposes itself as a locus of care and training for the different areas of attention to people with aphasia, articulating, interdisciplinary, aspects of enunciation to therapeutic practice.

Educação em saúde para pacientes submetidos à revascularização miocárdica: validação de história em quadrinhos / Educación en salud para pacientes sometidos a revascularización miocárdica: validación de historieta / Health education for patients undergoing myocardial revascularization: comic book validation

Resumo Objetivo Desenvolver e analisar as evidências de validade de conteúdo de uma tecnologia educacional do tipo história em quadrinhos (HQ) para pacientes submetidos à Cirurgia de Revascularização do Miocárdio (CRM). Métodos Estudo de validação realizado em três etapas. A primeira consistiu na avaliação das necessidades de informações dos pacientes submetidos à CRM; a segunda foi o desenvolvimento de um roteiro para a tecnologia educacional do tipo HQ; e a terceira, a análise das evidências de validade de conteúdo desse roteiro, realizada por seis especialistas, sendo considerado válido quando obtido um Índice de Validade de Conteúdo superior a 80%, sendo, posteriormente, elaborada a HQ por um ilustrador. Resultados Na primeira etapa, 10 pacientes relataram terem necessidades de informações sobre alimentação, consumo de bebidas alcoólicas, controle da ansiedade e do estresse, controle da dor, cuidados com a ferida operatória, tabagismo, atividade física, relação sexual, retorno ao trabalho, liberação para viagens e direção de automóveis. Com base nesses dados, elaborou-se, a partir de revisão de literatura, a história fictícia de um paciente submetido à cirurgia de revascularização do miocárdio, com as respectivas orientações realizadas pela enfermeira. Esse roteiro da HQ foi avaliado pelos especialistas alcançando adequada concordância após a segunda rodada. Após validação, a HQ foi elaborada pelo ilustrador e analisada pelos especialistas. Conclusão A tecnologia educacional do tipo HQ atingiu adequadas evidências de validade de conteúdo pelos especialistas, podendo ser utilizada como uma das estratégias na orientação da alta hospitalar.

Resumen Objetivo Desarrollar y analizar las evidencias de validez de contenido de una tecnología educativa del tipo historieta para pacientes sometidos a cirugía de revascularización del miocardio (CRM). Métodos Estudio de validación realizado en tres etapas. La primera consistió en la evaluación de las necesidades de información de los pacientes sometidos a CRM; la segunda fue el desarrollo de un guion para la tecnología educativa del tipo historieta, y la tercera fue el análisis de las evidencias de validez de contenido de ese guion, realizada por seis especialistas, donde fue considerado válido un Índice de Validez de Contenido superior al 80 %, y luego un ilustrador elaboró la historieta. Resultados En la primera etapa, 10 pacientes mencionaron la necesidad de obtener información sobre alimentación, consumo de bebidas alcohólicas, control de la ansiedad y del estrés, control del dolor, cuidados de la herida quirúrgica, tabaquismo, actividad física, relación sexual, vuelta al trabajo, autorización para viajar y para conducir vehículos. Con base en estos datos y a partir de la revisión de literatura, se elaboró la historia ficticia de un paciente sometido a una cirugía de revascularización del miocardio, con las respectivas orientaciones realizadas por una enfermera. El guion de la historieta fue evaluado por los especialistas y obtuvo una concordancia adecuada luego de la segunda ronda. Después de la validación, el ilustrador elaboró la historieta y los especialistas la analizaron. Conclusión La tecnología educativa de tipo historieta alcanzó evidencias de validez de contenido adecuadas por los especialistas y puede ser utilizada como una de las estrategias para la orientación en el alta hospitalaria.

Abstract Objective To develop and analyze the evidence of content validity of a comic book-type educational technology for patients undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Graft surgery (CABG). Methods Validation study conducted in three steps. The first consisted of assessing the information needs of patients undergoing CABG; the second was the development of a comic book-type educational technology script; and the third, was the analysis of the evidence of content validity of this script performed by six experts. It was considered valid when a Content Validity Index above 80% was obtained. Subsequently, the comic book was designed by an illustrator. Results In the first step, ten patients reported needing information about food, alcohol consumption, anxiety and stress control, pain control, surgical wound care, smoking, physical activity, sexual intercourse, returning to work and clearance to travel and drive. Based on these data, a fictitious history of a patient undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery was developed from a literature review, with the respective instructions given by the nurse. This comic book script was evaluated by the experts, reaching adequate agreement after the second round. After validation, the comic book was designed by the illustrator and analyzed by the experts. Conclusion The educational technology of the comic book-type reached adequate evidence of content validity by the experts, and can be used as one of the strategies in guidance of hospital discharge.

Comics in the Time of a Pan(dem)ic: COVID-19, Graphic Medicine, and Metaphors.

Comics have always responded to pandemics/catastrophes, documenting the way we deal with such crises. Recently, graphic medicine, an interdisciplinary field of comics and medicine, has been curating comics, editorial cartoons, autobiographical cartoons, and social media posts under the heading "COVID-19 Comics" on their websites. These collected comics express what we propose to call covidity, a neologism that captures both individual and collective philosophical, material, and wide-ranging emotional responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Treating such comics as the source material and drawing insights from theorists Ian Williams, Alan Bleakley, Susan Sontag, and others, this article examines graphic medicine's representation of the COVID-19 pandemic. The conceptual metaphors of war, anthropomorphism, and superheroism are used to represent and illustrate the lived experience of the pandemic, and the article investigates metaphor types, their utility, and motivational triggers for such representations. In doing so, the essay situates graphic medicine as a productive site that presents the pandemic's multifarious impact.

Drawing the mind: Aesthetics of representing mental illness in select graphic memoirs.

Representation of psychological experiences necessitates a creative use of means of expression. In the field of graphic medicine, autobiographical narratives on mental illness find expression through the unique semiotic nature of comics, which facilitates the encapsulation of complex psychic-scapes and embodiment of the artist's experiences. In so doing, these verbal-visual techniques provide vividness and easily digested expression, translating the sufferer's altered mental perspective effectively for the reader. The deployment of such elements inherent in the medium facilitates multilayered connections to the patient narrative, which provide a depth beyond the raw medical discourse. The present essay, with reference to Ellen Forney's Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, & Me: A Graphic Memoir and Allie Brosh's Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and other Things That Happened, investigates the mediative value of rhetorical devices unique to the medium of comics in actualizing the subjective experience of mental illness. The essay also seeks to delineate the cultural power of graphic memoirs by positioning them at the crossroads of sufferer's experiences and clinical description, drawing on theoretical insights from George Lakoff and Mark Johnson and other graphic pathographers/theorists, such as Ian Williams and Elisabeth El Refaie.

Informing children citizens efficiently to better engage them in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the beginning of the year, the world's attention has rightly been focused on the spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the implementation of drastic mitigation strategies to limit disease transmission. However, public health information campaigns tailored to children are very rare. Now more than ever, at a time when some governments are taking populations out of lockdown and youth are returning to schools, children around the world need to fully grasp the modes of transmission of the disease, the health risks, the scientific notions of the immune system, the value of barrier measures, and the progress of scientific research. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, comics can be very useful for communicating quickly and effectively abstract and important information to children who might be under the influence of a large amount of sometimes contradictory information. Conveying precise, reliable, and accessible information to children is key in a world overwhelmingly impacted by the outbreak. This should be the role and the responsibility of world health official leaders and governments in compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. In partnership with mainstream medias, consortia of scientists, communication experts, and education specialists, it is urgent that world leaders engage children in this worldwide public health fight.

Comic Books, Dr. Wertham, and the Villains of Forensic Psychiatry.

Comic books have been part of popular culture since the 1930s. Social activists quickly became concerned about the risk that comic books posed for youth, including that their content was a cause of juvenile delinquency. Dr. Fredric Wertham, a forensic psychiatrist, led efforts to protect society's children from comic books, culminating in multiple publications, symposia, and testimony before a Senate subcommittee on juvenile delinquency in 1954. During the course of his activities, and quite possibly as a backlash, comics started to represent psychiatrists and particularly forensic psychiatrists as evil, clueless, and narcissistic characters (e.g., Dr. Hugo Strange went from being a mad scientist to a mad psychiatrist). Clinical forensic psychiatrists who were not necessarily evil were often portrayed as inept regarding rehabilitation. There are very few positive portrayals of forensic psychiatrists in the comic book universe, and when they do occur, they often have severe character flaws or a checkered history. These negative characterizations are woven into the fabric of contemporary comic book characters, whether represented in comic books or other media offshoots such as films and television.

The role of comics in public health communication during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps the globe, evolving containment measures have created an unprecedented need for rapid and effective science communication that is able to engage the public in behavioural change on a mass scale. Public health bodies, governments, and media outlets have turned to comics in this time of need and found a natural and capable medium for responding to the challenge. Comics have been used as a vehicle to present science in graphic narratives, harnessing the power of visuals, text, and storytelling in an engaging format. This perspective paper explores the emerging role and research supporting comics as a public health tool during the COVID-19 pandemic.