Let’s talk about healthcare and comics.

Sunday, January 4, 2026

12 pm to 1:30 pm

on Zoom

Registration has ended
View the January 4th agenda

What’s the purpose of the event? The purpose of this event is to foster interest in Graphic Medicine in Guilford County and encourage participation in the 2026 Graphic Medicine Conference.

What’s Graphic Medicine? Graphic Medicine is the intersection of comics and healthcare. This event will provide a primer on this area of comics and you can learn more ahead of the event by visiting my page on Graphic Medicine.

Who should attend? This event may be of interest to many people. You or someone you know may be interested in attending if:

  • You are interested in comics.
  • You are interested in healthcare.
  • You have a heath-related experience as a patient and/or in your day-to-day life that you would like to explore and/or share.
  • You are interested in the ways art supports health or how art shows up in healthcare.
  • You are interested in reading new types of books or finding more comics/Graphic Medicine to read.
  • You are an illustrator, writer, or other artist.
  • You want to learn more about the work of artists.
  • You want to support artists.
  • You work in or around healthcare.
  • You love books.
  • You’re interested in who else in Guilford County you could connect within this topic.

Some specific professions in healthcare that are relevant to this area of comics: medical librarians, patient educators, continuing education professionals, health equity professionals, medical illustrators, arts councils, art therapists.

Wait. I’m not in Guilford County. Can I still attend? Yes. While my intention is to foster interest in Guilford County because, well, it’s where I am, I welcome attendees from outside of the county. Lots of reasons why. You may work here but not live here, live here and not work here. You may have some other affinity with this area. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for the people in comics and other arts that embraced me around the state. Some parts of the event will have a focus on resources in Guilford County but that info can still be relevant if you don’t live/work here.

How can I share the event with others? You can send others a link to this page. If you would like to share an image, click this link which will take you to an image with a QR code. Feel free to repost/share a post from me. Thanks for sharing!

Is there a registration deadline? No.

What is the format and agenda of the event? This virtual event on Zoom will be webinar-style (that is, I will be presenting). I am currently finalizing the agenda, which I will share on this page ahead of the event. Generally, I will present a primer on comics and Graphic Medicine, share my experience, review information about the 2026 Graphic Medicine Conference, and provide recommendations on further exploring this area of comics in Guilford County. There may even be some time for quiet activity.

How can I prepare for the event? I will be sharing tips and guidance along the way to the day of the event. Here are some things to know and do now:

  • You are welcome to turn your camera on or turn it off during the event. You know what could be fun? Use a drawing of yourself as your profile picture! Or a comic/comic character you like.
  • I will not record the virtual meeting. I hope that this meeting is one of many ways for us to connect over Graphic Medicine and comics so I will make that effort by sharing audio, visual, and written information during and after the event.
  • I do not allow “AI assistants” in the Zoom room (such as read.ai and otter.ai). I do not consent to their use during the event so I may be actively removing them if they show up (there will be a waiting room). I will be one person managing the whole event, which may be a limitation here. At this time, I have turned off all AI Companion settings in my Zoom settings. Again, I will provide meeting notes and relevant materials after the event.
  • This event is happening around lunchtime. Feel free to eat during our time together.
  • This event may be relevant to your personal experience, your hobbies, your work, someone you know, or some combination. This will be an informal but structured event and hopefully you can apply what you learn to your personal and/or professional life.
  • Is this a family-friendly event? Sure! While it’s not an event geared towards children, I will be sharing some of my favorite examples of Graphic Medicine, which are middle grades comics. This may also be a nice time for the kids to do some drawing alongside you.
  • Spend some time noting, looking through, or even gathering your favorite comics, your favorite Graphic Medicine works, or even healthcare info/materials.
  • I may ask you to respond to polls related to the subject matter during the event.

How are you using my contact information from registration? I am using your contact information from your registration to know about who is planning to attend, which can also help me focus the info within this area of comics that I talk about. I will use the information afterwards to send follow up info. I am not using an email marketing service and do not plan to send regular messages after wrapping up this event. This does leave an opportunity for the group to think about how we might want to keep in touch with each other and/or Graphic Medicine-related opportunities.

Aden. Who are you? I am a comics fan with personal and work experience in healthcare. I am hosting this event as just me, not part of a company or organization. I read comics and I make them! I also like to talk about them. And so here we are!

How can I contact you? Contact me however you already do. If you want to send me an email, you can email me at ComicBookResolutions@gmail.com.

This page will be updated!

Background of lined notebook paper with doodles in purple, digital pencil of various health and healthcare related images. In the middle is information about an event graphic medicine in Guilford County Sunday, January 4, 2026 time and location 12 PM to 1:30 PM on Zoom, you can register by scanning the QR code in the image or going to adenhailemariam.com. There is a QR code in the center of the page and large text that says register today!

A little more about me

Hi. I’m Aden. I love comics and zines and share those interests as much as I can.

I have work experience in the worlds of nonprofits, philanthropy, healthcare, and marketing.

Relatedly, I spend time thinking about the ways in which we invoke things like “equity” and “community”, how equity and community relate to each other, and how we gather and use information to strengthen both.

I’ll be satisfied when I make a great vegan choux pastry. How has that been harder than making vegan macarons? I also love libraries and, now that I think about it, I like a lot of other things (icebox cakes are great).

Take a look around!