LITERACY PROMOTION IN PEDIATRIC PRIMARY CARE IN THE UNITED STATES

Introduction: This presentation provides a review of the Reach Out and Read (ROR) program in the United States, including its historical aspects spanning more than three decades, while discussing the current statistics within the program and its impact, and also its growing evidence base. The program currently serves 4.2 million children annually, reaching out to them through 40,000 trained pediatric clinicians at more than 6000 clinics. More than half of the children participating in the program are from low-income families, and it is a ROR priority to reach children at risk from negative social aspects relating to health, including poverty, racism, and inequity. Aim: I will discuss the structure of the program, including the role of the National Center and its regional affi liates, concentrating on the strategic initiative that we call the “Next Chapter”, which formulates the Reach Out and Read model in terms of supporting parents, promoting early foundational relationships, and increasing positive childhood experiences, which aims to protect children growing up in adverse circumstances and help build resilience. The ROR model promotes book-related language-rich positive interactions, which strengthen those all-important interactions and provide families with opportunities and routines fostering such positive experiences. Methods: The presentation will review the training curriculum for medical providers, especially using books in the exam room to assess children’s development and connect with parents. The talk will also reference other important ROR initiatives, including promoting diverse books, starting at birth, working in the NICU, and supporting early mathematical skills along with early literacy skills. Conclusion: In 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy statement on “Literacy Promotion in Pediatric Primary Care”, which recommended that such literacy promotion should be a standard part of primary care for all children, citing the body of evidence that links participation in ROR with increased the frequency of parents reading aloud, increased positive attitudes toward books and reading aloud by both parents and children, and improved vocabulary skills in preschool children. The supporting evidence includes work on positive childhood experiences and toxic stress. Hence, I intend to discuss ways ROR can help clinicians reconnect with their original ideals and intentions concerning pediatric primary care and off er a sense of joy to pediatric providers, families, and the whole clinical setting