The Reach Out and Read (ROR) Model prepares young children to succeed in school by partnering with doctors to prescribe books and encourage families to read together. ROR begins at the 6-month checkup and continues through age 5, with a special focus on children growing up in low-income communities.
ROR Outcomes
- Parents are 2.5X more likely to read with their infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.
- Parents are 2X more likely to read with their children three or more times per week.
- Families are 2.5X more likely to enjoy reading together or to have books in the home.
- Children’s language development is improved by 3-6 months.
- Children’s language ability improves with increased exposure to Reach Out and Read.
- Clinic culture and clinician well-being are improved.
Results provided by Reach Out and Read National Center
How We Are Involved
Darlington County First Steps is partnered with Eastern Carolina Pediatrics in Darlington, CareSouth Carolina and Carolina Pines Regional Medical Center's Pediatric Department. These healthcare centers are dedicated to the ROR Model and support early literacy with First Steps. Their facilities have a literacy-rich waiting room for parents and their children to explore the wonders of books together.
Adolescent Health Initiatives
Tier 1- Project I.M.P.A.C.T (Implementing Meaningful Program Across Communities Together)
Funder: US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Population Affairs
Grant Time Period: July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2028 (5-year grant)
Project I.M.P.A.C.T is designed to implement medically accurate, evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs and provide a network of support services to advance equity for young people (ages 17-24), their families, and communities through addressing sexual reproductive health outcomes in Darlington County. College students residing in Darlington County have been selected as the population of focus due to the evident disparities in teen births and STIs. Although teen pregnancy rates have declined significantly in Darlington County, STDs and STIs have increased. Throughout this five-year project, Project I.M.P.A.C.T. and Darlington County First Steps will also collaborate with the community to ensure youth have equitable access to community services.
To connect with a community health worker, call or text 843.639.3090.
AC/DC: Accessing Condoms in Darlington County
According to Darlington County's 2019 data, Darlington County was identified as being the 21st highest in the state for teen pregnancy rates. As a result of the findings in a research report titled Accelerating Progress: A roadmap for achieving further reductions in teen pregnancy, the S.C. Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, now known as Fact Forward, identified four strategies that are needed to reduce teen pregnancies. Providing teen-friendly condom access points was one of the four strategies.
Teen pregnancy is an issue that many youth in our community face but is not the only one. Darlington County is ranked 16th in the state for Chlamydia infections and 20th in the state for Gonorrhea infections amongst 15-19 year olds (see Darlington County data for more information). Because we care about the future and health of our youth, we choose to provide resources for them that are easy to find and easy to get.
What Can Be Done?
There are several ways to abstain from getting pregnant as a teen and to prevent being infected with STDs, STIs, HIV, and AIDS and we have centered in on one of those options. With the guidance of the Accelerating Progress research report, we have established places where you can go to receive FREE condoms, FREE of judgment. That is barbershops, beauty salons, small businesses, and individuals in the community.
Preconception Counseling
Morehouse School of Medicine's Center for Maternal Health Equity study, Project IMPACT (IMproving Preconception Actions and Choices for Tomorrow)
Darlington County First Steps has entered a five-year partnership with Morehouse School of Medicine’s Center for Maternal Health Equity (MSM CMHE) to conduct a study looking to better understand how to implement a preconception counseling program in the Southeast and create programs for healthy mothers, fathers, and babies. According to the South Carolina Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Review Committee (SC MMMR Committee), between 2014 and 2018, 73 South Carolina women died within six weeks of giving birth, a rate of 25.5 deaths per 100,000 live births. The maternal mortality rate was 2.6 times higher for Black and other minority women versus white women (43.3 vs. 16.4 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, respectively).
The MSM CMHE study, titled Project IMPACT (IMproving Preconception Actions and Choices for Tomorrow), aims to learn the current preconception health behaviors of Black men and women of reproductive age in the Southeastern United States. Preconception counseling programs help both men and women become healthier before pregnancy so that they or their partners can have healthier pregnancies. Darlington County First Steps and MSM CMHE are working with Black or African American males and females living in Darlington County, between the ages of 18-44.
Community Health Alignment Initiative
Health Navigation to Address Social Determinants of Health
The Center for Community Health Alignment awarded funds to Darlington County First Steps November 2024 to implement the Community Health Alignment Initiative (CHAI). The CHAI program was established by the South Carolina General Assembly Proviso 33.20 titled the Medicaid Accountability and Quality Improvement initiative 2023-2024 Appropriations Act in 2023 which authorized SC Department of Health and Human Services to contract with the Center for Community Health Alignment (CCHA) in a collaborative effort to expand the community health worker program with the goal of improving health outcomes for individuals without access to affordable health insurance by facilitating resource connections and access to safety net providers.
Click here to learn more about why community health work is important to school readiness.