Category Archives: Prints & Photographs

Images illustrating the social and historical aspects of medicine.

A nurse in dark goggles sits by a patient lying with skin exposed to a bright electric light. December 20

Don’t be SAD: A Very Brief History of Light Therapy

By Michael Sappol As December 21, the shortest day of the year approaches, when the gray and dark is at its height and golden sunshine is scarce, it’s easy to feel gloomy. Doctors have a diagnosis for that, Seasonal Affective Disorder (conveniently acro­nymed as “SAD”), a name coined in the 1980s by Norman E. Rosenthal, […]

A pass of heavy paper or cloth with grommets at the corners. December 06

A Nurse’s Scrapbook from The Great War

By Stephen J. Greenberg Anniversaries can be funny things. As we observe (“celebrate” somehow seems wrong in the context) the 100th anniversary of the First World War, it’s not always easy to pick a precise date to mark. What day, exactly, did the war begin? Was it June 28, 1914, the day the Archduke Franz […]

Drawing of the AIDS Memorial Quilt on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. December 01

Trade Cards in The Fight Against AIDS

By Ginny A. Roth     World AIDS Day is an international observance held on December 1st each year and an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, show their support for people living with HIV, and to commemorate those who have died. World AIDS Day was the first ever global […]

101433276_feature October 20

The Punitive Expedition, 1916

By Stephen J. Greenberg The political situation in Mexico, always a matter of great concern to the United States, was particularly volatile in late 1915 and early 1916.  There were several revolutionary armies in the field, fighting the remnants of the government of Victoriano Huerta as well as each other.  The fragmented opposition, with a […]

Hand-colored woodcut of a tree from "Ortus Sanitatis," bearing leaves in a golden color often seen on trees during autumn. September 30

Autumn Highlights

By Ginny A. Roth The autumnal equinox has come and gone, and what lies ahead of us are cooler temperatures, falling leaves, and the beginning of the holiday season. The upcoming months also bring us national and international observances, holidays, and events, some familiar, some a bit obscure. In recognition of the season, we hope […]

Coloring book with a cartoon of a louse on the cover September 02

Color Me Healthy

By Ginny A. Roth More than just a tool to keep children occupied, coloring books provide an entertaining, friendly, and interactive medium that can simplify otherwise complicated health-related subjects. Important public-health issues are conveyed to children in coloring books in a way that can transform an unpleasant subject into an engaging learning opportunity. For instance, […]

A color halftone printed postcard showing two small figures and a sweeping landscape of mountains, lakes and evergreen forest. August 25

America’s National Parks: Preserved for Public Health

By Anne Rothfeld The National Park Service (NPS) celebrates its centennial on August 25, 2016.  From Maine to Hawaii, the breadth of NPS includes parks, seashores, monuments, Indian reservations, and historic sites.  America’s parks are filled with an abundance of natural wonders: glaciers and rivers, flora and fauna, animals and insects, canyons and sand dunes, […]