Books for Brook building a love of literacy with little ones and parents at hospital

Books for Brook is helping the smallest patients and young families in the North Bay Regional Health Centre with a donation of books to the recently launched Learn, Laugh, Love and Read with Me program.

Designed to promote newborn bonding and development in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), the new program provides families and caregivers visiting the NICU with the opportunity to select a book from the lending library to read to their newborns. Books For Brook donated 50 board books to the program.

Having a baby admitted to the NICU is often an overwhelming experience and can lead to parents feeling alienated from providing normal parental care to their infants.  Many babies in NICU have medical needs that prevent normal infant behaviours and require a much different level of care. Medical illness and treatments can be a barrier to bonding when parents are separated from their infants and in some cases, cannot even hold their infants for some time. The Learn, Laugh, Love and Read with Me program helps parents develop an experience of normalcy and helps them feel they are directly contributing to their infants care and development right from the start.  Reading, speaking and singing to infants brings infants and parents comfort while also promoting newborn brain development.

It’s a natural fit for Books for Brook, Nipissing’s Centre for Literacy volunteer program supporting early literacy in the North Bay Community.

Books for Brook was established in memory of Brook Doseger, a 2016 graduate of Nipissing University’s Concurrent Bachelor of Education degree. Brook inspired many during her time here at Nipissing.

“Books for Brook is very pleased that we could help newborns and parents in our community through the Learn, Laugh, Love and Read with Me program,” said Tara-Lynn Scheffel, associate professor, Language and Literacy in the Schulich School of Education.  “It’s a perfect fit for us and I’m sure that Brook would be delighted to know that her legacy is helping babies and parents in the NICU.”

Anyone wishing to donate new board books to the library program, can drop them off at the Schulich School of Education office in the Books for Brook box.