The UCSF Library was recently awarded a Collection Equity Outreach Award from Region 5 of the Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM). This grant enabled the Library to acquire a collection of fifty-one graphic novels and comics about health topics, i.e., graphic medicine.
Beginning this graphic medicine collection at the UCSF Library not only allows the collection to better align with research trends but also provides our clinicians with fresh sources of patient experiences to draw from in order to help improve care at UCSF and beyond. By weaving together text and imagery in a highly accessible way, graphic medicine captures patient, community, and healthcare provider experiences in a unique format that naturally engenders empathy and understanding. As COVID-19 has so powerfully demonstrated, our individual and collective health relies heavily on communication. Graphic novels are a highly effective format for communicating both scientific information and personal experience.
The graphic medicine collection is an extension of our heavily circulated popular reading collection. Titles were selected to emphasize the broad representation of diverse voices, medical conditions, and topics. In order to reach the widest audience possible, both print and electronic books were purchased, and everyone in the UCSF community can check out these graphic medicine titles. Historically significant comics are also available from the Library’s Archives and Special Collections.
To learn more and see the purchased titles, please visit our graphic medicine research guide. Additionally, a virtual comic-making event will be scheduled in the near future.
National Institutes of Health Acknowledgement
Developed resources reported in this news item are supported by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under cooperative agreement number UG4LM013725 with the University of Washington. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.