SBH Health System and Literacy Inc. are partnering together to raise healthy readers in The Bronx. Join us on Friday, August 26 from 1:00pm to 3:00pm as we host a ribbon cutting ceremony to launch early literacy spaces and programs inside the state-of-the-art SBH Health & Wellness Center located at 4507 3rd Avenue in The Bronx.
Eric Appelbaum, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of SBH Health System will join Literacy Inc. Deputy Director, Eliana Godoy for remarks celebrating the launch. Literacy Inc. parent volunteers from The Bronx will distribute free books and host an outdoor reading program in the rooftop garden. Our special guest reader will be Robert Vazquez, The Director of Marketing and Communications at SBH, reading his book Next Stop, Yankee Stadium.
According to the U.S. Department of Health, literacy and health are interconnected. Limited literacy is a barrier to accessing health information, proper medication use, and utilization of preventive services. Individuals with limited literacy face additional difficulties following medication instructions, communicating with healthcare providers, and attaining health information — all of which may adversely affect their health.
SBH and LINC will raise healthy readers by focusing on five major components:
Newborn literacy kits for children born in the SBH Health System
A literacy hub in the pediatric registration center of the newly-constructed Health and Wellness Center
Building home libraries by distributing free multilingual and culturally representative children’s literature
Early literacy programming that targets families with newborns and toddlers
Raising awareness about the importance of literacy from birth
The goal of the SBH Health and Wellness Center is to be a pioneer in supporting community access to a healthy life in The Bronx by providing nutritional education, access to healthy food, and fitness activities customized to their patients’ unique needs. This partnership with Literacy Inc. adds a focus on early literacy skill development to support the growth of healthy minds as well as healthy bodies.
“Opening the door to literacy can be one of those transformational events that provides a child with sustainable tools that will help navigate a lifetime”
- Janine Adjo, MD - Chair, Department of Pediatrics, SBH Health System
