Lisez, parlez, chantez : la promotion de l'alphabétisation précoce dans le milieu de la santé.

Le présent document de principes aidera les dispensateurs de soins à évaluer l'alphabétisation précoce dans les familles et à leur donner des conseils, et ce, dans presque tous les contextes d'exercice. On y définit les habiletés d'alphabétisation émergente, y compris l'apprentissage précoce du langage et des récits oraux, et on y explore les bienfaits de la lecture, de la parole et de la chanson auprès des nourrissons et des tout-petits, tant pour eux que pour les adultes qui en sont responsables. La lecture partagée au coucher et d'autres habitudes liées au langage ont un effet positif sur la santé familiale, relationnelle et socioaffective. L'exposition précoce à la langue parlée à la maison peut contribuer à l'alphabétisation dans les autres langues auxquelles l'enfant pourrait être exposé. On y trouve enfin des recommandations particulières pour les cliniciens qui conseillent les familles en matière d'alphabétisation précoce.

Read, speak, sing: Promoting early literacy in the health care setting.

This statement will help health care providers assess and advise on early literacy with families in almost any practice setting. It defines emergent literacy skills, including early language learning and storytelling, and explores the benefits of reading, speaking, and singing with infants and toddlers for both children and caregivers. Book sharing at bedtime and other language-related routines positively affect family, relational, and social-emotional health. Early exposure to any language, when spoken at home, can benefit literacy learning in other languages children may encounter. Specific recommendations for clinicians counselling families on early literacy are included.

Attitudes and practice of Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (Ottawa, Ontario) paediatricians and residents toward literacy promotion in Canada.

BACKGROUND: Literacy is a critical health issue in Canada. Paediatricians play an important role in improving literacy skills; however, formal training in literacy education and promotion is not currently part of most Canadian paediatric residency programs. OBJECTIVE: To examine the attitudes and practice of paediatricians and residents at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO [Ottawa, Ontario]) toward literacy promotion. METHODS: A descriptive, cross-sectional survey of CHEO-affiliated paediatricians, residents and fellows was performed. Survey items addressed demographics, attitudes toward literacy, current practice and previous education/training in literacy education through self-reporting. RESULTS: One hundred ninety-seven surveys were distributed, with a response rate of 82%. Ninety-one per cent of respondents reported never having formal training in literacy development and promotion. Seventy-four per cent of respondents believed that low literacy is a significant health issue in Canada; however, only 16% of respondents reported regularly discussing literacy with patients and their families. Thirty-nine per cent of general paediatricians reported discussing literacy with patients and families regularly, compared with 10% of paediatric subspecialists (P<0.01). Seventy-one per cent of respondents believed that literacy education should be a standard part of residency education. CONCLUSIONS: While most respondents identified literacy as an important paediatric issue, most paediatricians did not regularly discuss the importance of literacy with their patients. General paediatricians are most likely to discuss literacy. There is a lack of formal education among paediatricians in literacy development and promotion, and the majority of respondents believe that this should be a standard part of paediatric residency training.

The appropriateness of referrals to a pediatric emergency department via a telephone health line.

OBJECTIVE: We compared the appropriateness of visits to a pediatric emergency department (ED) by provincial telephone health line-referral, by self- or parent-referral, and by physician-referral. METHODS: A cohort of patients younger than 18 years of age who presented to a pediatric ED during any of four 1-week study periods were prospectively enrolled. The cohort consisted of all patients who were referred to the ED by a provincial telephone health line or by a physician. For each patient referred by the health line, the next patient who was self- or parent-referred was also enrolled. The primary outcome was visit appropriateness, which was determined using previously published explicit criteria. Secondary outcomes included the treating physician's view of appropriateness, disposition (hospital admission or discharge), treatment, investigations and the length of stay in the ED. RESULTS: Of the 578 patients who were enrolled, 129 were referred from the health line, 102 were either self- or parent-referred, and 347 were physician-referred. Groups were similar at baseline for sex, but health line-referred patients were significantly younger. Using explicitly set criteria, there was no significant difference in visit appropriateness among the health line-referrals (66%), the self- or parent-referrals (77%) and the physician-referrals (73%) (p = 0.11). However, when the examining physician determined visit appropriateness, physician-referred patients (80%) were deemed appropriate significantly more often than those referred by the health line (56%, p < 0.001) or by self- or parent-referral (63%, p = 0.002). There was no significant difference between these latter 2 referral routes (p = 0.50). In keeping with their greater acuity, physician-referred patients were significantly more likely to have investigations, receive some treatment, be admitted to hospital and have longer lengths of stay. Patients who were self- or parent-referred, and those who were health line-referred were similar to each other in these outcomes. CONCLUSION: There was no significant difference in visit appropriateness based on the route of referral when we used set criteria; however, there was when we used treating physician opinion, triage category and resource use.