Wouldn't it be nice to have a simple way to help all children be healthy and ready for school? The reality, of course, is that young children are complex little beings, who live in families, inside communities, and they have multiple needs. "Simple" questions like "How can we help parents?" do not have simple answers.
But Atul Gawande is right. Working together, complex problems can be solved. Doing what is needed to fundamentally shift the American approach to medicine, and early learning, cannot be done by a single doctor, a single organization, or a single discipline. It will take systemic multifaceted strategies.
And it must start with parents and babies, casting a wide enough net to set the stage for all children to reach their potential. And that's where leveraging the health care system--actually, I dare say, building our early learning system around it--comes in. Families already come to the doctor, a lot, in early childhood; and they rely on the advice of their child's medical provider. Doctors play a "coaching" role with parents, knowing from both research and experience that what happens at home over time is what matters the most for both health and educational outcomes.
Reach Out and Read is a deceptively simple appearing strategy that leverages complexity to accomplish proven outcomes for large populations of children and families. The impact is great because it occurs at the intersection of several very complex things: parenting, health care, and early learning. And when doctors give children a book, and teach families how cuddling together and sharing books builds language, literacy, and communication skills that help children be ready for school, magic (actually brain development!) unfolds right in front of them. There are now over 1,500 medical providers in 186 diverse clinics in 31 counties in Washington State who have transformed their practices to support over 100,000 young children and their families through Reach Out and Read.
So today I'd like to share two new ways to convey the power of Reach Out and Read. One simple, a short video; one complex, a longer document presented as a parable. Contemplate the simplicity of doctors teaching parents through the precious gift of a book how to support the wonder--and complexity--of their developing child. And then think about how we can use the relationship between doctor and family to identify needs, and connect families to early intervention, home visiting programs, child care, preschool and other community services. And then wonder, what if we "just do this" everywhere? Because, quite simply, we absolutely can.
