Trout Library Blog - Library Guides at Charles H. Trout Library

To mark LGBTQ Pride Month, we would like to take the opportunity to highlight some sources that will provide an understanding of the specific struggles that members of the LGBTQ community face in terms of health and accessing the health care system.

The stress and anxiety that come from fearing and experiencing discrimination and stigmatization often lead to poorer overall health outcomes for LGBTQ than for the broader population -- including more heart disease and high blood pressure, as well as the early onset of disabilities. Click here to read a Healthline article that provides a good summary of these issues.

Because those who are LGBTQ face a significant number of health disparities, it is important for students planning to enter health fields to have a full understanding of these differences so that they can serve LGBTQ populations compassionately and effectively. A September 2018 peer-reviewed article in the PLOS ONE database compares the preparedness of medical, dental, and nursing students to address LGBTQ health. The article is open access and does not require a password. Click here to read it.

There are two books in the EBSCO eBooks Academic Collection database that would be very useful for studying the topic of LGBTQ health. To access them, a username and password are required. You can find this information in the Library Database Password List under Quicklinks in Harcum Hatch. Choose the username and password for the EBSCO databases.

The first book is Health Care Disparities and the LGBT Population, edited by Vickie L. Harvey and Teresa Heinz Housel. This book contains a series of essays that cover issues such as low rates of health insurance coverage in the LGBTQ community, high rates of stress due to systematic harassment, stigma, and discrimination; and a lack of cultural competency in the health care system. It aims to increase people's understanding of the social and structural inequalities that LGBTQ populations experience in order to improve the lives of entire communities, medical care, and prevention programs and services.

Health Care Disparities and the LGBT Population by Vickie L. Harvey (Editor); Teresa Heinz Housel (Editor)

ISBN: 9780739187029

Publication Date: 2014

The second book is The Remedy: Queer and Trans Voices on Health and Health Care, edited by Zena Sharman. It is an anthology of real-life stories from queer and trans people about their own health care experiences and challenges, from gay men living with HIV who remember the systemic resistance to their health care needs, to a lesbian couple dealing with the experience of cancer. It also includes essays by health care providers, activists and leaders who write about the challenges, politics, and opportunities surrounding LGBTQ health issues.

The Remedy: Queer and Trans Voices on Health and Health Care by Zena Sharman (Editor)

ISBN: 9781551526584

Publication Date: 2016

Kanopy has a number of documentaries on LGBTQ healthcare. If you need help accessing Kanopy we have a tutorial.

For more in-depth documentaries about transgender healthcare, Kanopy has an 11-part documentary called Transgender Tuesdays. Part one is a 60 minute documentary that covers the history of transgender healthcare and looks at a ground-breaking clinic and the change it made to the lives of the people who received care. Parts two through 11 are each a short (less than 5-minute) narrative of individuals who received care at a clinic in San Francisco.

Transgender Tuesdays by Mark Freeman

Publication Date: 2014

Finally, Gen Silent - Discrimination Against LGBT Seniors documents discrimination in long-term care. It interviews six LGBTQ individuals and asks them if they will hide their lives, friends, spouses and loved ones in order to survive the care system. There is full length (60-minute) version and an abridged (24-minute) version.

Gen Silent - Discrimination Against LGBT Seniors by Interrobang Productions / Stu Maddux Films

Publication Date: 2012

For more information on LGBTQ issues, our Diversity & Gender Studies library guide and our new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion guide will provide you with some selections.

If you have any questions about these sources or any others, please feel free to email us at library@harcum.edu.

Happy LGBTQ pride month!

Bill Fanshel

Evening/Weekend Librarian

wfanshel@harcum.edu

610-229-9311

Roxanne Sutton

Reference and Special Collections Librarian

rsutton@harcum.edu

610-526-6022

Recent Posts

The Bryn Mawr Substation

Eagle-eyed observers around campus may have noticed recent construction activity at the Bryn Mawr Substation. This work, undertaken by Amtrak, is more than just a facelift; it's part of a significant three-year project to upgrade the train line stretching from the Philadelphia Zoo to Paoli. Interestingly, this isn't the first major transformation for the Bryn Mawr Substation, a structure which has been a backdrop to our community, intertwined with the story of Harcum College.Built in 1915, the same year Harcum College first opened its doors in Melville Hall, the Bryn Mawr Substation stands as a silent witness to the college's growth. Constructed by the Pennsylvania Railroad as part of the electrification of their line, the substation's early construction would have coincided with Harcum's initial upgrades to Melville Hall, marking the beginning of a shared history within the Bryn Mawr landscape.While the Bryn Mawr Substation has become an unassuming part of the local scenery, the Harcum College Archive Collection offers glimpses into its past. The few photographs featuring the substation often capture it in the background.The earliest visual record of the substation in the Harcum College Archive appears in a photograph of Bedford Hall. Although undated, we know this image cannot predate 1947, the year Harcum acquired the building. Even in the background of this image, the Bryn Mawr Substation is visible, its structure remarkably similar to its present-day form, offering a tangible link between the college's mid-20th century and today. Decades later, in 1974, the Bryn Mawr Substation made another appearance in Harcum's history, captured in two photographs within The Harlequin, the college yearbook. These images, documenting the dedication of Harcum's new tennis courts, feature the substation in the distance. Local sportscaster Joe Pellegrino joined students for a game, watched by two hundred members of the Harcum community. The steadfast presence of the substation in the backdrop underscores its enduring place within the college's physical environment.The Bryn Mawr Substation forms the backdrop to a tennis match, The Harlequin, 1974.Two hundred members of the College community watched a tennis match on the new courts. The Bryn Mawr Substation is visible in the background, The Harlequin, 1974.Local sportscaster, Joe Pellegrino stands among Harcum College tennis players at the opening ceremony of the new tennis courts, The Harlequin, 1974Though the familiar presence of the Bryn Mawr Substation will be missed, its legacy remains embedded in the visual and historical fabric of the campus. The arrival of the new substation signals progress, a continuation of the ever-evolving relationship between the college and the infrastructure surrounding it. Just as Harcum has grown and changed over the years, so too will this space, shaping the future while carrying echoes of the past. Roxanne Sutton Reference and Special Collections Librarian 610-526-6022 rsutton@harcum.edu ...

Unveiling Harcum’s Hidden History through Advertisements

Imagine stumbling across a century-old advertisement that sheds light on the remarkable women who shaped Harcum College. This thrilling discovery recently unfolded at the Charles H. Trout Library, where the archives gained three original advertisements. ...

A Familiar Face

The bust of Dr. Charles Wharton Stork has been a permanent fixture in the Library since 1984. But why is is there? He was a prolific author and taught at Harcum. He also survived a sinking ship. We look at archival material to tell us more. ...

Elizabeth "Libbie" Hall Willis, Harcum School Principal, 1921-1929

Recently, I was asked for records from our archive relating to Elizabeth "Libbie" Hall Wilis. What we found was a new piece of Harcum College history I think is worth documenting.Willis was the Head of the Academic Department and Prinicpal from approximately 1921 to 1929 and later an advisor to Edith Harcum until approximately 1934. Elizabeth Hall Willis, who went by Libbie, obtained a degree in painting from Syracuse University. Before coming to the Harcum School, she had a career as an art teacher at the University of Arkansas and at Chatham Hall. It was while teaching art at Chatham Hall she met a student, Georgia O'Keefe. You can read about this encounter and the on-going professional relationship between Willis and O'Keefe in Linda Grasso's book Equal under the Sky: Georgia O'Keefe & Twentieth Century Feminism. Equal under the Sky by Linda M. GrassoCall Number: 759.13 .G769 2019ISBN: 9780826360731Publication Date: 2019See pages 107-115Willis came to the Harcum School to lead the academics and college preparation program. Her title in 1921 was “Head of the Academic Department” but it was later changed to Principal. Throughout her time at Harcum, she was mentioned in the yearbook, Purple Patches, especially in association with her work with college preparation studies. In the "Class Will" in 1922 the students express fond appreciation and love for her. The 1923 yearbook was dedicated to Mrs. Willis. This is quite a show of support by the student body. Her portrait finally appears in the 1929 yearbook. She left Harcum School after 1929, although she was mentioned as an advisor in the 1934 academic calendar, perhaps she stayed in touch to advise Edith Harcum. The biggest surprise of all is that we found her on video. In those years, Edith Harcum’s son Bill Harcum was given a silent film camera and he took silent moving images around the school. The films were digitized and Bill Harcum gave commentary on the films. You can see Elizabeth Willis briefly at 0:12 seconds, right at the beginning of the film. Bill Harcum mentions Mrs. Willis by name and calls her the head mistress. Libbie Hall Willis had a interesting life as an artist and academic before and after her time at Harcum College. Harcum is fortunate to be able to claim her as one of our own. Roxanne Sutton Reference and Special Collections Librarian 610-526-6022 rsutton@harcum.edu ...

LGBTQ Health Resources