Himmelfarb Library is excited to welcome the GW Writing Center back to the library for in-person consultations starting Monday, February 9th!
Key Details:
Tutor: Isabella, a Political Communication and Health Equity major with an interest in Public Health
When: Mondays, 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Location: Himmelfarb Library 1st floor (near the New Book shelf)
Appointments:Schedule your appointment today! Drop-ins welcome as availability allows. Remote consultations are also available.
Cost: Free!
The GW Writing Center can help you with a wide range of writing needs, including research reports, grant proposals, cover letters, and group projects. They offer in-person and virtual writing consultations. If you can’t make it to Himmelfarb during the weekly 4 to 6 pm sessions on Mondays, in-person consultations are available at Gelman Library (Suite 234 on the entrance floor), or you can make a virtual appointment. To get the most out of your session, some pre-appointment preparation is encouraged.
Check out the Writing Centers resources for writers page for helpful online writing resources. For help with citations, check out Himmelfarb’s APA and AMA citation style guides.
Looking for opportunities to relax and de-stress? Check out Himmelfarb's February 2026 Healthy Living Study Break Guide for a great list of free and cheap things to do in the DC area this month! This month's highlights include: ice skating, a Magic: The Gathering Academy, film screening of The First Man, author talk with Lee Bollinger about his new book "University - A Reckoning," Nick Cave's "Mammoth" art exhibit, a free musical concert by the Leonkoro Quartet, the DC Chinese Lunar New Year Parade, an Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander art exhibit ("The Stars We Do Not See"), and a free admission day at the National Museum of Women in the Arts! Read the full post for details!
Learn to play Magic: The Gathering at a free event sponsored by Magic Foundations. This event will teach newbies how to start playing, and help beginners hone their skills. Welcome card decks will be provided.
Attend this screening of the first-ever film adaptation of The First Man, by Eugene O'Neill. The director, Hardeep Giani, will be on hand to participate in a Q&A following the film. This screening is part of the DC Independent Film Festival. Tickets are available through Eventbrite, or at the box office.
Legal scholar, professor and former university president Lee Bollinger speaks about his new book, University: A Reckoning, which addresses how the structure of the American university system both contributes to its success and also makes it vulnerable to attack. The event will also be livestreamed on YouTube.
Visionary artist Nick Cave creates an immersive environment in Mammoth, which consists of video projections and found objects. The exhibit focuses on connections between humans and our environment.
The Berlin-based Leonkoro Quartet performs works by Beethoven, Mendelssohn, and Dutch composer Henriëtte Bosmans, on the Library's Stradivari instruments.
Celebrate the Year of the Horse with a dynamic parade featuring traditional Chinese lions, dragons, and other performances. The firecracker finale will begin around 3:45 pm.
Experience an exhibit of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art -- the largest such exhibit ever seen in North America. Paintings on bark, dot painting maps of deserts, and works in neon, video and photography are all included in this show, which includes works that have never before been seen outside Australia.
For this month and the first comic of the new year, let's learn more about misinformation, disinformation and more!
SOURCES:
Frankfurt HG. On Bullshit : Anniversary Edition. Anniversary edition / with a postscript by the author. Princeton University Press; 2025.
Hannigan TR, McCarthy IP, Spicer A. Beware of botshit: How to manage the epistemic risks of generative chatbots. Business horizons. 2024;67(5):471-486. doi:10.1016/j.bushor.2024.03.001
Ashby, Jessica. “The Effects of Medical Misinformation on the American Public.” Ballard Brief. March 2024. www.ballardbrief.byu.edu.
Borges do Nascimento IJ, Pizarro AB, Almeida JM, et al. Infodemics and health misinformation: a systematic review of reviews. Bull World Health Organ. 2022;100(9):544-561. doi:10.2471/BLT.21.287654
Buntain C, Snegovaya M. Post-January 6 deplatforming shows long-term effects on ideological polarization among Twitter users. PNAS Nexus. 2025;4(11):pgaf333. Published 2025 Oct 22. doi:10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf333
Taubert F, Meyer-Hoeven G, Schmid P, Gerdes P, Betsch C. Conspiracy narratives and vaccine hesitancy: a scoping review of prevalence, impact, and interventions. BMC Public Health. 2024;24(1):3325. Published 2024 Nov 29. doi:10.1186/s12889-024-20797-y
Himmelfarb Library has recently been impacted by reductions in its operating budget and staffing. The library’s subscription budget was reduced by 10% for fiscal year 2026. As we respond to these challenges, new AI tools are changing information discovery, and scholarly communications are moving increasingly to open access models for distribution.
In the current climate, it’s critical to identify what resources and services are most needed by library users to prioritize them for ongoing support and development. We also want to learn what new tools faculty are incorporating into their scholarship and patient care, and how we can best help support the transition to more open access publishing.
If you are a faculty member in SMHS, the GW School of Nursing, or the GW School of Public Health, we are requesting 10-15 minutes of your time to respond to a survey on library collections, services, and accessibility. Please look for a direct email from us, which you should receive the week of January 26, 2026. If you do not receive the email with the survey link by February 2nd, please reach out to himmelfarb@gwu.edu.
All survey respondents will have the opportunity to enter a drawing for a free hardback book. The winner can choose one of the following titles:
The Rotation publishes an annual post for International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is observed this year on Tuesday, January 27. Read past posts.
As the last living survivors of the Holocaust pass away, the world loses their eyewitness accounts and testimonies of the atrocities that occurred during this dark period of the 20th century. The history of the Holocaust and the important messages it offers are being operationalized in new ways to underscore its relevance to contemporary professional practice in healthcare.
Wald, a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine at Brown University, is also the Commissioner of the Lancet Commission on Medicine, Nazism, and the Holocaust. The Lancet Commission was convened in 2023 in order to, in part, help develop educational approaches to the subject of the Holocaust which "promote ethical conduct, moral development, and the formation of a professional identity based on compassion..." (Czech et al., 2023).
The Lancet Commission requires Holocaust history to be taught across health professions education in order for this professional identity formation to be history-informed. The history of the Holocaust involves many threads, including "the complicity of health professionals in the persecution and dismissal of Jewish health professionals, forced sterilization and 'euthanasia' murder of the disabled, coerced 'experimentation,' and the genocide of Jews and mass murder of other groups" (Kruse & Wald, 2025).
The curriculum was introduced as a two-hour continuing education seminar which met the implicit bias requirement for CE in nursing, which is required for licensure in Michigan (where the seminar took place). The learning objectives of the seminar included: describing why it is a moral imperative to learn about egregious ethical violations committed by health professionals in Nazi Germany; explaining the history of healers becoming killers and providing examples of health professionals in the Nazi period who exhibited moral courage; identifying social and professional factors contributing to the complicity of health professionals in the Holocaust's mass atrocities; and examining the legacy of the Holocaust for relevance to implicit and explicit bias, healthcare inequities, and preservation of human dignity (Kruse & Wald, 2025).
The 63 participants in the seminar were surveyed prior to and following the activity on a number of aspects of their knowledge of the subject prior to the seminar, and the effectiveness of the training following the seminar. Nurses participating described "new awareness of [the historical facts of] medical experimentation, euthanasia programs for children, and health care institutions as execution sites" (Kruse & Wald, 2025). Nurses reflected positively on the opportunities given for them to reflect creatively, both in writing and in an art interpretation activity. Participants were instructed in the STOP technique (stop , take a breath, observe, proceed) for self-reflection in order to mitigate bias. Nurse educators attending the seminar indicated they planned to incorporate Holocaust content into their "ethics content, research modules, and classroom discussions" (Kruse & Wald, 2025). Overall, the authors found that the seminar underscored the importance of bringing together historical, ethical, and bias education for nurse professional development.
Viewed more broadly, healthcare practitioner education can only benefit from future practitioners developing deeper awareness of the atrocities of the Nazi period, more specifically as they pertain to the ways in which practitioners were derelict in their duties as caregivers, and more broadly in terms of the lessons the Holocaust provides that may help avoid implicit and explicit bias.
References
Czech, H., Hildebrandt, S., Reis, S. P., Chelouche, T., Fox, M., González-López, E., Lepicard, E., Ley, A., Offer, M., Ohry, A., Rotzoll, M., Sachse, C., Siegel, S. J., Šimůnek, M., Teicher, A., Uzarczyk, K., von Villiez, A., Wald, H. S., Wynia, M. K., & Roelcke, V. (2023). The Lancet Commission on medicine, Nazism, and the Holocaust: historical evidence, implications for today, teaching for tomorrow. The Lancet (British Edition), 402(10415), 1867–1940. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01845-7
Kruse, J. A., & Wald, H. S. (2025). Legacy of Medicine and Nursing During the Holocaust and Its Contemporary Relevance: Addressing Implicit and Explicit Bias and Health Care Inequities. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 56(12), 527–534. https://doi.org/10.3928/00220124-20250926-01
On Saturday, January 31, 2026 we will be open from 8am - midnight and resume our regular schedule.
Due to the snowstorm, Himmelfarb Library's physical building was closed Sunday, January 25, 2026 through Thursday, January 29, 2026.
Accessing Resources
Even when our doors are closed, our digital library never closes! You can continue to access all electronic resources, including databases, e-journals, and e-books, via the Himmelfarb website.
Chat reference services usually remain available from 8:00am to 8:00pm weekdays.
Book Sale Update!
The Annual Book Sale, originally scheduled for Tuesday, January 27th - Friday, January 30th has been postponed to next week, February 3-6, 2026.
Whether you are looking to bolster your personal reference collection, find a new study guide, or find resources to help you prep for board exams, the time has come to get it all at bargain prices! Himmelfarb Library’s Annual Book Sale begins next week.
Stop by the library to browse a wide selection of medical and health sciences texts. This is a fantastic opportunity to pick up essential resources at a fraction of their retail cost.
When: Join us on the first floor for four days of deals!
Date
Hours
January 27th (Tues)
8:00am - 8:00pm
January 28th (Weds)
8:00am - 8:00pm
January 29th (Thurs)
8:00am - 8:00pm
January 30th (Fri)
8:00am - 12:00pm (Noon)
Location: Himmelfarb’s 1st Floor Reference Alcove (located conveniently near the restrooms)
Pricing & Payment: Our prices are simple and affordable - perfect for a student budget!
The 10th Annual SMHS Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Advancing the Dream Lecture features J. Keith Melancon, MD, Professor of Surgery at GW, Chief of the Transplant Institute and Division of Transplant Surgery, and Medical Director of the Ron and Joy Paul Kidney Center.
In-person attendance is strongly encouraged. Zoom registration is available.
This event will be recorded.
The 2026 theme is “Advancing the Dream: The Responsibility of Now.” Inspired by Dr. King’s powerful words, “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now,” we are compelled to consider how history will remember what we did with our moment.
Dr. King’s message challenges each of us in medicine and the health sciences to move from awareness to accountability, from empathy to engagement. The dream advances only when principle becomes action, and silence gives way to courage.
Have you ever given blood? Almost everyone has encountered posters and advertisements for blood drives, either at school, work or other gathering places. A blood drive can look strange at first: my first blood drive took place in our school gymnasium. I can still remember how odd it was to see the place I associated with dodge ball lined with people on cots sipping juice as nurses walked by. I didn’t end up donating myself - I was scared of needles at the time - but for the rest of the school day, we could always tell who donated by the bandage on their arm.
I eventually got over my fear of needles by being on the other side of the blood donation process. In 2020, I had to receive multiple blood transfusions, and let me tell you, after two days in the hospital being poked with needles, it becomes mundane. If it wasn’t for those transfusions, I doubt I would have recovered as quickly as I did. I owe my health to the kindness of strangers.
American Red Cross. (2026). US Blood Supply Facts. Facts About Blood Supply In The U.S. | Red Cross Blood Services. https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/how-to-donate/how-blood-donations-help/blood-needs-blood-supply.html
We hope everyone had a long and restful Winter Break and are ready to get back into gear for Spring semester classes! We are looking forward to seeing everyone back in Himmelfarb Library!
As always, Himmelfarb Library is here to support you as you work this semester. Let us remind you of the basics of how we can help!
Library Hours
Himmelfarb’s regular hours:
Himmelfarb Library
Reference Services
Consultation
Monday - Thursday
6:00am - Midnight
8:00am - 8:00pm
8:30am - 5:00pm
Friday
6:00am - Midnight
8:00am - 7:00pm
8:30am - 5:00pm
Saturday - Sunday
8:00am - Midnight
Not staffed
Not staffed
The Hours page on the Himmelfarb website lists exceptions to our regular hours, including holiday closures.
Study Areas
Himmelfarb is a great place to study and has a variety of options to meet different needs and study styles.
Social Zone – 1st Floor: Our first floor is our social floor! It’s a great place to study with your classmates, hang out with friends between classes, and take a study break. We have a collection of coloring books, board games, puzzles, and a chessboard for when you need to unwind and catch a breath.
Silent Zone - 2nd Floor: Himmelfarb’s second floor is completely silent and reserved for graduate and advanced degree students. It’s the perfect place when you need no distractions so you can focus on your studies. Librarians enforce silence on this floor; even whispering can bother your fellow students.
Quiet Zone - 3rd Floor: The library’s third floor is a quiet (but not silent) study area. Whispering and quiet conversation are acceptable, but please be respectful of other students. For large study groups, the first floor or a study room might be better.
Group Study Rooms: Our study rooms are located on the second and third floors, and are great for study groups! Please reserve a room in advance to make sure the room is all yours! However, these rooms aren’t noise-proof, so please keep conversations quiet so you don’t bother others in the Silent and Quiet Zones.
Our Collections
Himmelfarb has extensive collections of online resources, including 120 databases, more than 6,500 e-books, and more than 6,600 journals that you can access anytime, any place, on and off-campus. Our main print collection, located on the basement floor, is available for checkout usually for three weeks, and if you need more time, you can renew the books at the first-floor service desk or from your library account twice.
On the first floor, we also have our Reference Collection and our Humanities and Health Collection. Reference Collection books are handbooks, encyclopedias, and dictionaries that can provide reliable information at your fingertips. Unlike our main collection, Reference books cannot be checked out. Books in our Humanities & Health Collection include fiction and popular non-fiction titles focused on medical or health-related topics. Take a break from textbooks and scholarly articles and enjoy a fun book when you need a break. Humanities and Health Collection items can be checked out for three weeks at a time.
If you can’t find what you need from our collection, we can get it for you from another library! We can borrow physical books from other universities in the DC area with the Consortium Loan Service, and we can get articles and books from the whole country (sometimes the world) using Docs2Go(ILL). Learn which option is best for you on our Borrowing from Other Libraries page.
Technology Resources
A library is more than just a warehouse for books and journals. We also have a lot of technology and equipment for you to use!
Virtual Reality Headsets: Use this awesome technology to explore virtual anatomy as well as healthy living apps.
3D Printing: We have two 3D Printers that students can use for free. Check out our 3D Printing Guide for more information, as well as databases of 3D Models.
BodyViz: This interactive anatomy tool is a great way to explore and learn anatomy in a fun and new way!
Statistical Software: We have specialized software installed on some of the computers on the 3rd floor, including ArcGIS, SPSS, SAS, NVivo, and MATLAB.
Recording Equipment: We have digital camcorders, voice recorders, and ring lights for your media-related projects. You can reserve these in advance to make sure you can get them.
Medical Equipment: We have suture kits, a blood pressure monitor, an ultrasound machine, an ECG Monitor, an iPhone otoscope, and a fitness tracker available for you.
Tech & Support: We have chargers for your iPhones and MacBooks, USB-C to HDMI OUT and USB-C to USB-A In adapters, HDMI Cables, headphones, and dry-erase markers for you to use. We also have free earplugs at the first-floor desk.
Reference and Research Support
Himmelfarb librarians do more than provide you with resources! We can also help you do research and find what you need for your work, whether you’re looking for just the right article for a class assignment or need help with a literature search or systematic review. We can also help you learn how to use our resources like RefWorks and Covidence.
Come by the first-floor service desk to get help from our friendly staff in person, or use our Ask a Librarian service to chat virtually. Our chat services are staffed by real Himmelfarb librarians (definitely not AI), so you can be sure you’re getting help from an expert. You can also always email us a question or schedule a meeting with a reference librarian at himmelfarb@gwu.edu.
