Read-a-thon is back at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital NICU at Memorial Hospital Miramar and its Un-BEE-lievable

In celebration of NICU Month and National Literacy Month, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital NICU’s at three Memorial Healthcare System locations took part in Read-a-thon. Developed by Babies with Books, Read-a-thon is a friendly reading competition between NICUs designed to inspire more parents to read to their babies in the NICU.

This is the fourth year participating for Memorial Hospital Miramar and currently ranks as sixth in the nation by Babies with Books. This year, the theme, "Our Mighty Readers are Un-BEE-lievable,” continues to inspire and elevate the hospital’s tradition of compassionate and forward-thinking care. Staff and patients dressed the NICU babies in bumble bee inspired outfits and had access to a bee themed library. The NICU’s at Memorial Hospital West and Memorial Regional Hospital also took part, with West going for a Dr. Seuss inspired theme.

Elaine Green, nurse practitioner at Memorial Hospital Miramar, has been a driving force for the program since the beginning and explained the impact of the event.

"This Read-A-Thon initiative has been significant, as it has made parents realize the importance of reading to their baby, even during this early stage. Just spending 20 minutes a day reading to their baby can have a profound impact.” Elaine also stressed how the library, which is available to families year-round at Memorial Hospital Miramar NICU, helps parents, saying, “As we continue this practice and new parents are introduced to our library, they become excited and feel empowered to actively participate in their baby's care.”

Mom Nicole Immeziano who participated in the Read-a-thon at Miramar already has a library set up at home and plans to make reading a tradition with baby Lucciano. Nicole spoke about the impact of the reading program in creating memories.

“I can tell him stories outside of the books about how this was this nurse’s favorite book or her kids. Going forward it has more meaning and significance to it.”