Our Story
The first Soda Pop Hospital comics were based on real life events that took place in an Intensive Care Unit in the rural US.
These events, experienced by artist and art director Daniel Baxter, were used to create the comics that spoke to the perspective of a loved one of an ICU patient.
Together with the help of his friend, medical illustrator Vinald Francis, a short series was developed. Feelings like confusion and helplessness were illustrated by the cute monsters and animals that inhabited Soda Pop Hospital. This was the pilot series.
They collaborated with Dr. Rebekah Gardner and Dr. Kate Cahill to produce a medical comic using their research about rounding at the bedside. They decided to set these scenes in the world of Soda Pop Hospital. This became the Bedside Language Series.
A selection of these comics were published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in 2023.
After these comics were published, the authors decided to continue to create these comics as a means to explore and show the many different points of view of healthcare situations. Many of these perspectives are overlooked or not taken into consideration enough, especially for marginalized communities and underrepresented groups.
This not only effects the patients and loved ones in these settings, but also the healthcare practitioners: The interns, nurses, medical assistants, residents, students, physicians, department chairs, environmental and custodial workers, administrators, security, chaplains and food/dietary workers that make up the healthcare infrastructure.
These untold stories come from the inner city communities, rural regions, and specialty medical centers all over the country and the world.
By showing these perspectives and sharing these stories we hope to educate the public and connect our community, building greater empathy and understanding for healthcare and beyond.
Daniel Baxter BFA is a visual artist and craftsman from Pittsburgh, PA. He is a graphic novel author, a muralist, and has worked as a television production designer and art director (Food Party -IFC). To see more, visit his e-commerce shops, the Kreepy Doll Factory and Kneebone Street Shop.
Vinald Francis BFA is a medical illustrator from Boston, MA. He works as a Biomedical Illustrator and visual consultant at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College. He is also a graphic novel author in addition to speaking and holding workshops on graphic medicine. He and his wife, Dr. Shontay Delalue have two children, Kiara and Kordell.
Vinnie and Danny B are both graduates of Cleveland Institute of Art.
To learn more about Medical Illustration visit Vinnie’s website and listen to him speak about the profession for this NPR segment, which aired in late 2024.
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To learn more about medical comics, or Graphic Medicine, visit graphicmedicine.org .
Find published medical comics on this page of the Annals of Internal Medicine, The Annals of Graphic Medicine.
