“It’s My Book!”: Bronx Children Light Up as NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx Puts Free Books in Their Hands
Reach Out and Read program combats literacy barriers in the Bronx, one pediatric visit at a time
Mar 30, 2026
When a child at NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx clutches a brand-new book for the first time and exclaims, “It’s mine!” — that moment is exactly what the Reach Out and Read program was designed for. For more than 15 years, the hospital’s Pediatric Primary Care Clinic has embedded the nationally recognized literacy initiative into routine well-child visits, distributing free, age-appropriate books to children, and turning a routine checkup into an entry to early childhood learning.
In the past two years alone, nearly 80,000 young Bronx children ages 0 to 5 left their appointments with a book to call their own.
“My daughter loves it. She is already asking for another book,” said Dalilah Delacruiz, a parent visiting the Pediatric Primary Care Clinic at North Central Bronx Hospital with her daughter. “I love the idea. It gives her a chance to focus more on reading books instead of playing with an iPad.”
In a community where language and literacy barriers are common, the program meets families where they are.
Bilingual books are available in the clinic’s most widely spoken languages: Spanish, English, and Arabic. Providers are trained to coach parents that interactive storytelling — describing images, asking questions, narrating scenes — is just as valuable as reading text aloud.
“When the children see these books, they get very excited. They see a book that they can read. They see the pictures and sometimes even the noise that the book makes. A bird. A cow. It’s something they learn. Something they hear,” said Lissett Falconi, the clinic’s clerical associate in charge of the books’ storage and distribution. “We had a kid with autism who heard the sounds from the book, and he became so calm and so quiet. He loved it. Once they open the book, it’s a new world for them.”
The program is funded and supported through the national Reach Out and Read organization, which provides books, training materials, and clinical guidance.
For families in the North Bronx, a doctor’s visit to North Central Bronx Hospital now ends with something tangible: a book in a child’s hands, a skill in a parent’s toolkit, and a small but powerful stride toward a lifetime of reading.
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CONTACT: Rawle Titus, NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx, 332-259-2512
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About NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi
NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi is a 457-bed teaching hospital affiliated with the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. The facility has earned numerous Center of Excellence designations, accreditation, and recognition for its renowned Level 1 Trauma Center, Burn Center, Surgical Intensive Care Unit, regional Stroke Center, Snakebite Treatment Center, Breast Health Center, Bariatric Surgery Center, and Cancer Service. The facility also offers the region’s only multi-person hyperbaric chamber, allowing up to nine patients to dive together at one time. Jacobi’s Ambulatory Care Pavilion is a stunning complement to its inpatient acute care, allowing staff to provide patients with high-quality service in a modern, state-of-the-art environment. For more information visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/jacobi/.
About NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx
NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx is a member facility of the New York City Health + Hospitals system, one of eleven acute care facilities within the City of New York. A 215-bed community hospital, North Central Bronx Hospital specializes in women’s and children’s services. It also provides Behavioral Health acute and ambulatory care. Its busy outpatient department has led the way in community-based care delivered in a compassionate and culturally-appropriate manner. Its Labor and Delivery service safely brings more than 1,000 babies into the world each year. North Central Bronx is committed to providing safe, high-quality medical care for any and all in need. For more information visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/north-central-bronx/.
About NYC Health + Hospitals
NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest municipal health care system in the nation serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlusHealth —all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 46,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.