AHN nurses featured in new Marvel comic book: 'The Vitals'

When Allegheny Health Network nurse Andrew Cleary was growing up, he loved Spider-Man and identified with the character in the way that many children do.

But he never imagined one day being on the same Marvel comic book pages as his favorite superhero.

Until now.

On Thursday Marvel Comics unveiled “The Vitals: True Nurse Stories,” presenting the stories of AHN frontline nurses like Cleary. Cleary, who has dark hair and a full beard, is one of the eight nurses whose images are featured in the illustrations.

“It just blows my mind, really. I still can’t believe it,” said Cleary, a 39-year-old North Hills native who works as a registered nurse in the intensive care unit at AHN Forbes Hospital in Monroeville. “When I did see it, I was kind of blown away, especially because it’s Marvel. It’s an honor.”

Celebrate our Healthcare Heroes! Honor the heroes of 2020 in a new comic created in collaboration with @AHNToday and @doner_agency. Read and experience true nurse stories in “The Vitals": https://t.co/erAFmuwlNf pic.twitter.com/L3OSjBQFTa

— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) December 3, 2020

The health system brought the idea to Marvel in late August, because it wanted to find a way to depict what nurses on the front lines are going through during the coronavirus pandemic, said Claire Zangerle, AHN chief nurse executive.

“Covid-19 challenges our nurses professionally and emotionally,” said Zangerle. “We know many of them are giving their best while under great stress. They are our heroes, and we are excited to honor them in such a unique and powerful way with ‘The Vitals.’ ”

Marvel sent writer Sean Ryan to Pittsburgh to gather stories at AHN hospitals. He ended up weaving three main story lines into the book.

One story line concerns a patient who can’t breathe and the team of nurses working to prevent his respiratory system from shutting down. Another is about a patient who is isolated from his family and the nurse who brings him an iPad so he can connect with his wife.

“They would send me pictures of the comic books to make sure they got the PPE right, that they got the stories right and that it was true to life that this kind of stuff has happened,” said Zangerle.

Free print copies of the comic book are no longer available but a digital version can be found at Ahn.org/the-vitals. It’s also available for free in a digital version from Marvel.

“At Marvel, we tell stories about heroes every day. But this story is special. It tells a story about our everyday heroes — the nurses and health care professionals working tirelessly and courageously to save lives,” said Dan Buckley, president of Marvel Entertainment. “Along with AHN , we are honored to help tell these stories, which we dedicate to the real heroes who are saving the world.”

One of the first to see “The Vitals” comic book was Tracey Hynes, a frontline covid nurse at AHN Jefferson in Jefferson Hills. She said she was overwhelmed.

“I can’t believe that Marvel would want to do this to honor nurses,” said Hynes. “If you ask any nurse, they would never say that they are a superhero. We’re just doing our jobs. So, to have them come out and portray us as superheroes is overwhelming, very humbling and I was shocked. I’m very appreciative and I think that the whole nursing community will be.”

Hynes, a mother of two boys, said she became emotional as she read part of the comic book to her 11-year-old son.

The last story is called “Smiling Eyes” and “it was so real to me,” Hynes said. “There’s a patient in the hospital and he’s talking about the ‘nurse with the smiling eyes.’ She’s got a mask on and all he can see is her eyes and they always seem to be smiling when she comes in, trying to comfort him. So, it was real emotional for me.”

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that more than 175,000 new nurses will be needed nationwide each year through 2029. As the nursing shortage, which started before the pandemic, continues to grow, Zangerle said Marvel’s “The Vitals: True Nurse Stories” has the potential to become a powerful recruiting tool.

“We can print a bunch of these and distribute them across Western Pennsylvania and beyond to primary and secondary schools and show school-age kids what nurses are doing,” said Zangerle. “And school-age kids love comic books and they might look at this and say, ‘I haven’t thought about being a nurse when I grow up.’ ”

Who knows? This comic book could end up making nurses as popular as Marvel Comics heroes like Captain America, Iron Man and the Hulk.

“I just think it’s the coolest thing that they were able to do this for us and just raise awareness about what we’re going through. It’s going to give all of our nurses a boost to see this,” Cleary said.