Book signing to follow. 

ADMISSION: 
Admission is free and online viewing is available. Reservations required. 

RSVP

IDESCRIPTION: 
Shirlene Obuobi is a Ghanaian-American physician who is currently completing her cardiology fellowship in Chicago. During a stressful time in her medical education, Obuobi started making comics as a means of self-expression. Friends encouraged her to broaden her audience by creating a website and Instagram account under the moniker @shirlywhirlmd, which has more than 60,000 followers. She has also written a novel, On Rotation, which has been described as “effervescent” by Publishers Weekly, and is a regular contributor to the Washington Post. 

In a captivating lecture, Obuobi will describe how she utilizes comics for persuasion, advocacy, and commentary, and how the art form allows her to reflect on daily experiences and systemic healthcare issues, using stories to advocate for better patient care and healthcare-provider wellbeing in an often-dehumanizing healthcare system.  

This event is part of the Visualizing Medicine Lecture Series, which also includes a talk by Alison Bechdel and an exhibition featuring art by Obuobi and Bechdel at Norris Medical Library. 

Related Events: 

Visualizing Medicine: Humanizing Healthcare through Web Comics and Graphic Memoir 
Beginning Wednesday, November 1, 2023 
Norris Medical Library, Health Sciences Campus 
For more info, click HERE. 

Envisioning Empathy through Graphic Memoir: An Afternoon with Alison Bechdel 
Thursday, April 4, 2024, at 4 p.m. 
Mayer Auditorium, Health Sciences Campus 
For more info, click HERE. 

Presented by USC Visions and Voices. Organized by Pamela Schaff (Medical Education, Family Medicine, and Pediatrics), Renée A. Rau (Norris Medical Library), Annie M. Thompson (Norris Medical Library), Erika Wright (Medical Education and English), Sabrina Derrington (Pediatrics), and Ron Ben-Ari (Internal Medicine and Medical Education). Co-sponsored by Keck School of Medicine’s HEAL (Humanities, Ethics, Art, and Law) Program, the USC Libraries, and the CHLA Center for Bioethics.