Pediatricians prescribe books as part of national program

A nationwide program hoping to build early literacy skills involves pediatricians prescribing books to their patients.

“Reach Out and Read is a really fabulous program that partners clinicians like myself and parents and caregivers at every well visit to provide them a book. We’ll hopefully be that medium for you to start building your library,” said Dr. Gabriela Marein-Efron, a physician and pediatrician at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Families receive age-appropriate and culturally relevant books with some exposure to different languages, while also learning about the importance of shared reading at each well-child visit.

“I can walk into the room and see how a child interacts with the book and know a little bit about where they are in their development, what kinds of things they can do, what kinds of things they can’t do and then also model for parents how to use that book to help push their development a little bit farther,” said Dr. Marein-Efron.

Locally, clinicians have given out over 150,000 books with 86 active sites. For more information or to find a participating clinic near you, visit the Reach Out and Read website here.