Little Health Ambassadors, a children's book franchise by clinician-turned-author Ken Korber, is launching its newest book, titled Grace Saves the Day, which teaches readers about stroke and how to recognize its symptoms, allowing them to ask for help in case their older relatives show signs of stroke.
Grace Saves the Day is co-authored by Korber and his friend Bill Turck, who survived a stroke while on vacation in 2022. It features Grace & Friends, a group of characters created by Korber as the protagonists of the Little Health Ambassadors books, which promote reading, health education, and music appreciation to young readers aged 3 to 6. Grace is a young eight-year-old girl who was transformed from a ‘Grace note’ in The Musical Adventures of Grace- Winter Story. Grace notes are notes that are used to add color to a musical piece, that Korber saw in his son's sheet music.
In the book, Grace's elderly aunt begins to show symptoms of a stroke, and Grace is able to recognize these, with the help of her talking dog Arco, and she is able to ask for help. It introduces the BE FAST method, which is an acronym that outlines the various signs of a stroke and what to do when someone exhibits them. BE FAST stands for Balance loss, Eyesight changes, Face drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulty, and Time to call emergency services.
According to Korber, after Bill's release from the hospital, they talked about creating the first book about stroke risk factors and how children can become aware of its signs and symptoms. The book combines Turck’s personal experience with Korber's background as a surgical and cardiovascular Physician Assistant for more than two decades, using Grace's story as a medium to impart this vital knowledge to young readers.
“I'm just very glad that Bill is still with us after surviving a stroke without major complications. He is a communicator and a former radio host, so being able to speak and think again is very important for him, at a personal level. Stroke is a cardiovascular disease, which is the leading cause of death in the US, exceeding cancer. From my knowledge, there is only one other children's book published that superficially mentions stroke, so it's really important to create a more robust tool that helps children recognize the warning signs and call for help,” Korber says.
Little Health Ambassadors was conceptualized in 2017, stemming from Korber's observation that patients only had around 10 minutes to talk to their physician during visits, which is not enough time to thoroughly communicate vital health knowledge. Patient education has always been one of Korber's advocacies, and the challenge in this area is to explain information that can be understood by anyone, even by those with a grade school-level education. He also believes that it's important to impart this knowledge to the next generation, allowing children to develop healthy habits as early as possible and increasing the chance that these stick with them for longer.
This led Korber to collaborate with various talented illustrators to bring the Little Health Ambassadors to life. The books are designed to be used in the classroom, pediatricians' waiting rooms, or read as bedtime stories at home.
“Children are able to absorb so much information by participating in reading sessions, and they learn more effectively from engaging cartoon characters, as opposed to an adult telling them what to do. This is why I created Grace & Friends to educate them about healthy habits, such as eating the right diet and brushing their teeth, and avoiding dangerous situations like burns. Aside from health, children will also have fun learning about reading and music through the adventures of Grace and her friends.”
Media contact:
Name: Ken Korber
Email: [email protected]
