To support and encourage children’s interest in reading, WMed Health Pediatrics, a clinical practice of Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine (WMed), is ensuring every child from newborn to 18 years of age receives a new, age-appropriate book during their annual well-child exam through clinic-wide literacy initiatives.
The books, distributed at WMed Health Pediatrics offices on Oakland Drive in Kalamazoo and Mall Drive in Portage, span a variety of titles and interests. Books are available in English and Spanish, as well as a limited supply of Arabic, French, and Mandarin books to match the primary language of the child.
The initiatives, Healthy Kids Read and Reach Out and Read, are made possible through grants and financial support from local businesses, community organizations, and donors, including Stryker, PNC, Perrigo, The Fetzer Institute, the Kalamazoo Rotary Club, and anonymous donors.
“Stryker is committed to uplifting our community and helping people reach their full potential. By providing books for children, we give them the tools to dream, learn, and grow. Giving a book is a small act with a potential lifelong impact for that child in the community and beyond,” said Anita Mehta, director of Social Impact for Stryker.
“For many kids in our community and the population we serve, these families are struggling at times to put food on the table or a roof over their heads,” said Nicole Garton, MD, assistant professor in the Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine and co-coordinator of Healthy Kids Read. “Books are way down on the list of priorities, so kids may get whatever they read at school and if their school has a library, but our programs ensure that they get some books in their life at home.”
Healthy Kids Read serves as an extension of the well-established national Reach Out and Read program, which provides free books for children newborn through age five. Wanting to support children beyond that age, Cailly Howell-McLean, MD, a pediatrics resident at the medical school from 2016 to 2019, conceptualized the idea of Healthy Kids Read in 2016, and immediately began seeking grant support for the program.
Since the fall of 2017, WMed Health Pediatrics has distributed nearly 17,000 free books to kids in Southwest Michigan collectively through Healthy Kids Read and Reach Out and Read.
Both efforts are overseen at WMed by Dr. Garton and Erica VanderKooy, MD, an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine who also serves as associate program director for the Pediatrics residency program. Though it started out small, the duo is now ordering thousands of books each year.
“It’s really engrained in our clinic. This is just part of who we are at WMed,” Dr. VanderKooy said. “The patients really love it, but it’s also an opportunity to get new books in the hands of kids who don’t necessarily have access to literature.”
And having books in the home helps patients succeed, Dr. VanderKooy added, as identified in Jeff McQuillan’s 1998 book “The Literacy Crisis.”
“Kind of the punchline of the book was that books in the home are the single biggest indicator of academic success, surpassing income, parents’ education, family composition and all other factors,” Dr. VanderKooy said. “We’re in the business of preventative healthcare, and this is the ultimate preventative healthcare.”
Drs. Garton and VanderKooy acknowledge that the medical school’s efforts in pediatric literacy would not be possible without the incredible support of many in the Kalamazoo community, particularly as the cost of books continues to climb.
“I think it’s indicative of the philanthropic nature of Kalamazoo in general,” Dr. VanderKooy said of the support. “Kalamazoo is a very giving, supportive community.”
To honor this, an acknowledgment sticker is placed on the back of each book, thanking the program donors. Those interested in supporting the program in the future are encouraged to contact Drs. Garton and VanderKooy at nicole.garton@wmed.edu and erica.vanderkooy@wmed.edu, respectively.
“You cannot beat handing out that book to a kid during their well-child visit,” Dr. VanderKooy said. “The smiles, the joy ... it’s just really cool to have that as part of our clinic.”
Contact the Office of Development at giving@wmed.edu for more information about how you can support the medical school by making a gift or becoming involved in our efforts.