Marlon Meyer
Northwest Asia Weekly
Image via “Heroes of Health Handbook”
Remember when your parents told you to stop reading comic books and do your homework? Well, now it’s your homework to have a comic book. It can literally save your life.
The Seattle Department of Education and Early Learning (DEEL) has released a comic book called “Heroes of Health Handbook,” which depicts children facing fears of a COVID-19 vaccine.
The subtitle reads: “Answer Your Family’s Questions About Children’s COVID-19 Vaccines.”
The comic is available online and will be distributed in hard copy to all Seattle School District schools with vaccination rates below 60 percent.
On the cover is a kid in a mask with a Band-Aid on his arm, apparently just getting a vaccine. The child wears a red cape surrounded by floating balls with pointed tips – depicting the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
When the child assumes a position where one arm is raised in the air and the other grabs at his side, vaguely reminiscent of a karate pose, a force field represented by wavy lines pours out around him.
It is from this shield that the virus seems to be flying at full speed.
Still, this comic book is actually for families, despite its appeal for kids.
Dr. Dwane Chappelle, Director of Education and Early Learning
“It’s about getting parents to start a conversation with their kids,” said DEEL Executive Director Dr. Dwane Chappelle.
In fact, the questions raised in the 12-page saga touch on the most pressing issues that many of the researchers have found, many of which were sparked by misinformation or lies spread on some television networks or social media.
For example, a survey last year by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 24 percent of Americans had heard that the vaccine actually causes COVID-19. Of those, 10% believed the lie, while 14% were unsure.
In the comic books, this is the only one of the nine questions that is described as being asked by an adult rather than a child.
Image via “Heroes of Health Handbook”
A grey-haired woman with a Band-Aid on her arm, and a little girl in a red cloak (which also has a Band-Aid) on her back, asks in a bubble that takes up almost half the picture: “Can I get it? COVID-19?”
The answer is: “Many people have heard of it, and the answer is definitely not!”
The heroes depicted in comic books are mostly children who bravely ask questions or endure the mild pain of being shot. But there are also researchers, holding test tubes, and families sorting out the answers together.
Olymar Gallagher, MPA, BSN, RN
And, of course, all of these heroes depend on real-life heroes like Olymar Gallagher, a certified school nurse and former high school teacher with a Master of Public Administration in Emergency and Disaster Management.
She revealed in an interview, and later confirmed in an email, that her superpower is “caring.”
She is often asked to look after students when she speaks on video conference calls.
“Sorry,” she said once, “I have to give asthma medicine.”
She disappeared from the screen for a moment, then came back.
She said the comic book will be part of an ongoing effort by schools and districts to get kids vaccinated.
These include a vaccine and booster clinic at her school, Bailey Gatzert. Another clinic is approaching.
“The Seattle School District is fortunate to work with medical facilities like Othello Station Pharmacy, Seattle Visiting Nurses and Safeway Pharmacy that specialize in working with children. They are warm and comfortable. They also speak multiple languages,” Gallagher said.
As a result, vaccination rates among school district students are well above the national average. Nationally, only 28% of children aged 5-11 are vaccinated. In Seattle Public Schools, it’s more than 65 percent. From 2012 to 2017, the national average increased to 58%. But for the region, 85% of people in that age group were vaccinated.
Still, Gallagher has high hopes for the comic book hero. She hopes they can help communicate with parents and their children who may have language barriers.
This comic is aimed at families with children ages 5 to 11.
Schoolchildren are obsessed with superheroes, experts say.
So Gallagher hopes it will help families whose native language is not English.
DEEL is translating it into multiple languages, including Spanish, Vietnamese, Somali, and one yet to be determined.
Still, this isn’t the only time a superhero is needed — jumping through a single tower of language and cultural differences.
According to Gallagher, the brave Avengers of the “Heroes of Health Handbook” comic book will also perform their duties in more complicated situations.
She said an immunocompromised child at her school had multiple COVID-19 infections and became “very, very depressed”. The parents, both working full-time and with multiple children, took months to convince them to get their families vaccinated.
Her experience is not unique. Several surveys have found that logistical issues are the main factor hindering vaccination. Gallagher said comics would help in this situation.
“I’m looking forward to the comic being released and using it as another tool for discussing immunizations,” she said.
Chappelle is planning to use it to talk to his daughter.
For Bailey Gatzert, whose most children are people of color, it helps that nearly all of the heroes in the comics are people of color.
Across the country, white Republicans are increasingly indecisive about a vaccine. National statistics show that Latinos, blacks and whites are now nearly equally hesitant to vaccines, according to the African American Research Collaborative.
But in our region, according to Public Health – Seattle & King County, “COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted communities of color in King County.”
Chappelle, formerly the principal of Rainier Beach High School, has seen graduation rates increase by 25 percent under his leadership.
He said: “Representation matters. Historically, culturally specific information about vaccines has not been widely available. We know communities of color continue to be disproportionately affected by COVID-19, but have also been hesitant to vaccinate. When it comes to the races of the different characters in the comics, we wanted to create a resource that our families of color can relate to and see for themselves as they consider the decision to vaccinate their families against COVID-19.”
The goal of the Healthy Heroes Handbook is not only to save lives, but to keep children in school.
“For us at DEEL, we want to support our families with culturally and linguistically acceptable information about the COVID-19 vaccine, to help our children stay safe and healthy, and to ensure they can learn face-to-face with their peers, “Chappell said.
For Gallagher, the comic is part of what she calls “huge” support.
DEEL provides or facilitates take-home activity kits, nearly $3 million for child care workers’ work during the pandemic, $100,000 in grants for students, programs addressing hate and discrimination, and many schools of vaccine education and clinics.
Gallagher also thanked the Seattle school district for its logistical support during the pandemic.
“I’ve never worked this hard in my life. There must be days when I want to throw in the towel, but there’s been a lot of support, and the team — I’m going to Mars with this team, and I don’t know how to get there.”
As she leaves the screen again to take care of another child, a normal nurse’s office is shown in the background. When she returned, she addressed some of the criticisms that inevitably surfaced on social media.
“So there’s a lot of work to be done, but I think it’s easy to criticize, it’s a lot harder to do. I mean you can criticize all day, but the train we’re on sometimes feels like it’s falling apart and we’re trying to fix it , because it’s moving, which is unprecedented,” she said.
It’s time for a few more heroes.
To view comic books online, visit: education.seattle.gov/handbook-for-health-heroes.
Mahlon can reach info@nwasianweekly.com.
