Reading Hospital’s Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) believes it’s never too early to start reading! The team participated in the 2025 Babies with Books Read-A-Thon, a friendly reading competition between multiple NICUs to promote early literacy, family bonding, and brain development.
“Even in the NICU, where babies may still be too small to hold, they can benefit immensely from the comfort of a parent’s voice," said Ariana Thomas, a registered nurse in the NICU.
The competition takes place each September, encouraging families and team members to read to babies as often as possible. From September 8 to 18, the team recorded reading sessions and collected new books to gift to families following the read-a-thon.
The team surpassed their goal of collecting 100 titles and were able to distribute more than 200 books to families in the community.
“Our Level III NICU offers the most advanced newborn care in Berks County, and the staff here are just incredible,” Charles F. Barbera, MD, president and CEO of Reading Hospital, said. “I am incredibly proud of them for helping to organize this beautiful initiative to help support our tiniest patients.”