UH Med Now

Dr. Kayla Murata (JABSOM MD 2020), currently a first-year resident at the University of Hawaiʻi (UH) Family Medicine Residency Program (UHFMRP) received full funding to acquire books for the pediatric patients of the University Health Partner of Hawaiʻi (UHP) Family Medicine Clinic, which serves as the continuity clinic for the UHFMRP residents. The grant came from the Hawaiʻi Pediatric Association for Research and Education (HPAREF) and the Hawaiʻi Academy of Family Physicians (HAFP).

“As a family physician, I have grown to have a strong passion for pediatric primary care with a focus on family bonding and early childhood development through reading. It is well known that reading is crucial to the developing brain in the areas of language, cognition, concentration, social-emotional development and gross and fine motor skill,” said Dr. Murata.

In August 2020, she rotated at the Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women and Children (KMCWC) outpatient clinic, where she first learned about the Reach Out and Read (ROR) Program.

“I enjoyed giving out an age-appropriate book at each well-child visit and using that book as part of my examination of the child and as a segway into a conversation with parents about reading,” said Murata. “This experience inspired my idea to establish our University Health Partners (UHP) Family Medicine clinic as a ROR site so that more keiki can grow their home libraries and spark a love for reading with their loved ones.”

Dr. Murata also recently received notification that the UHP Family Medicine Clinic has been approved as an official ROR site. With this designation, the clinic will have support from the national organization such as purchasing books at a discounted price through online book vendors such as Scholastic and All About Books. She now plans on implementing a longitudinal quality improvement project within the clinic to increase the frequency of discussions about reading during well-child visits.

“Together we will extend the gift of reading to Hawaiʻi’s keiki and their families, fill their homes with books and inspire a lifelong love for reading,” Murata added.

For more information to the Reach Out and Read Program, visit their website at https://reachoutandread.org/

A special Mahalo to the HPAREF and the HAFP for their financial support in this project, KMCWC outpatient clinic physicians and staff for their guidance and the faculty physicians and staff at the UHP Family Medicine Clinic who took part in these planning stages.

By Dr. Arcelita Imasa (JABSOM MD 2019), Special to UH Med Now
Featured photo: Dr. Kayla Murata