Empowering underserved children through representation, health literacy, and trusted content

As content creators and health care professionals, we believe passionately that the landscape of children’s health education must evolve. Traditional clinical encounters alone cannot fully address the broad education and inspiration needs of children—especially those in underserved, low-resource, or historically marginalized communities. Many of these children face multiple barriers: limited access to preventive care, fewer role models in healthcare, and less exposure to engaging, culturally-relevant health content.

Children today are digital natives. They consume video content, apps, and social media at a pace unseen by prior generations. For instance, streaming services now account for 43.3 % of all television viewing, and more than 11% of that content is seen via YouTube.¹ If we can meet children where they are, in accessible, digital, entertaining formats, we can close gaps in health literacy, spark curiosity, and shift their view of medicine from distant to attainable.

That’s the context in which The Doctor Is In was born. Developed by Ad Astra Media in collaboration with Joel Bervell, MD, the series features Leland (a 5-year-old boy originally introduced in our book Good Night Little Doctor) exploring medical questions alongside Bervell and animated medical tools such as Sammie the stethoscope and Zada the PACS machine. Our mission: make medicine fun, accessible, and aspirational for Black and Brown kids and equip families with accurate health information.

In what follows, we explain 3 key pillars of why this kind of content matters and how pediatricians can partner with it.

1. Reaching kids from underserved communities with health knowledge

In underserved settings, children and families often face barriers that limit their exposure to health education: shorter clinical visits, fewer resources in schools, limited school-based health curricula, and less time for in-depth parent/child conversations. Media-based interventions provide a powerful complement.

Because children are already consuming online video content, delivering educational episodes via YouTube and similar platforms enables scalability and accessibility. In our Kickstarter for The Doctor Is In, we raised nearly $64,000 and secured backing from YouTube Health to support distribution. Episodes are short (3-5 minutes), engaging, and grounded in familiar questions: “Why do we wash our hands?”, “What causes asthma?”, “What happens when you lose a tooth?” The format is designed to demystify medicine in a child-friendly way. With our initial success, we have been able to launch our first 3 full episodes and several ancillary pieces of content.

From a pediatrician’s viewpoint, this offers several advantages:

• The threshold for engagement is lower: Children are more likely to watch a fun animated segment than sit through a didactic health talk.
• Out-of-clinic reach: children who rarely visit the doctor or whose families have limited health education exposure can encounter this content at home or via school/community partners.
• Early exposure builds familiarity: When children learn basic health and medical concepts early, they are more comfortable in clinical settings, ask better questions, and may adopt preventive behaviors more readily.
• Family engagement: Episodes can spark parent-child conversations, reinforcing healthy behaviors, demystifying medicine, and opening a dialogue about careers in health.

For example, in our Good Night book, Good Night Little Doctor, children follow “little doctor Leland” on his journey, reinforcing the notion that someone like them can grow to care for others and that medicine is accessible. Pediatricians can integrate such media into their patient education toolbox, sending links home, playing episodes in waiting rooms, or partnering with after-school programs and libraries to host viewings and discussions.

Over time, repeated exposure to fun, reliable health messages in culturally relevant formats may help shift attitudes from “the doctor is scary” to “I have questions and understand what’s going on”. Especially in underserved communities where health literacy gaps are significant, this is a powerful lever. Evidence shows that digital communication tools improve health literacy and better health outcomes among disadvantaged populations.²

2. The power of representation: “If you see it, you can be it”

One of the strongest motivators for children is seeing someone who looks like them doing something they aspire to do. Representation is not simply a nice add-on; it is central to children’s sense of belonging, possibility, and trust.

In our work, “little Leland” is a young black boy who loves science, medicine, and helping people. The book series and the show intentionally position children of underrepresented backgrounds as future doctors, scientists, and engineers. The “if you see it, you can be it” mantra is more than a tagline; it is the heart and soul of our content.¹

From a pediatric clinician’s perspective, this matters in several important ways:

• Aspiration and pipeline: When children see themselves portrayed as doctors, researchers, or health care heroes, the possibility of entering STEM/health careers becomes more real.
• Patient/parent trust: Research suggests that racial and ethnic concordance (or at least representation) in healthcare correlates with better communication, trust, and health outcomes. While our show is not direct clinical care, representation in media helps children and families feel seen and understood—and more comfortable in healthcare settings.
• Normalization of diversity: The medical field historically lacks diversity. By showing children from Black and Brown communities in medicine, we contribute to shifting norms and expectations.

Joel’s own story exemplifies this: as a Ghanaian-American physician and content creator, he recognized the impact of seeing animated characters like himself while growing up, and now uses that privilege to catalyze change. For underserved communities where children may rarely encounter Black or Brown physicians or scientists, our show offers a mirror and a window.³

Pediatric practices can leverage this by promoting the show in clinics serving underserved populations, including in waiting rooms or via social media. They can also invite children to interact with local physicians of color or host “meet a doctor” events tied to the theme of the show. Representation then shifts from screen to real life.

3. Trusted sources of medical information for children and families

In today’s media environment, misinformation spreads quickly. Children and families in underserved or low-resource settings may rely on social media, word‐of‐mouth, or incomplete information rather than vetted medical content. For pediatricians, paradoxically, a parent may bring to the visit an erroneous belief learned online, thereby threatening trust and complicating care.

Our show addresses that gap by delivering accurate, age-appropriate content crafted by physicians and media professionals. Bervell has earned a reputation as a “medical myth-buster,” tackling issues such as racial bias in medical devices (e.g., how pulse-oximeters perform less accurately in individuals with darker skin) through widely-viewed social media. By translating that expertise into a children’s series, we provide a reliable voice and relatable format.⁴

For pediatric practices, this is meaningful. When children or caregivers come in having watched a trusted episode on, say, asthma or dental health, the clinic conversation can proceed with a foundation of shared knowledge. The show becomes a bridge—pre‐visit primer, post-visit reinforcement, or waiting-room discussion starter.

Suggestions for integration:

• During a follow-up appointment, provide a link or QR code to the relevant The Doctor Is In episode and ask the child (or caregiver) to watch before the next visit.
• Play a short clip in the waiting area and ask children: “What question would you ask Dr. Joel?” Then have your staff collect the questions and bring them into the visit.
• Provide caregivers with a “media-homework” sheet: watch the episode, talk about 3 things you learned, and note 1 question for your doctor next time.
• Highlight to families that the content is created by a physician and media professionals, not just influencers—reinforcing its reliability.

By aligning entertaining, culturally‐relevant content with the trusted environment of the pediatric practice, we can raise the health‐literacy baseline, reduce fear of care, and empower children and families.

Discussion and implications for pediatric practice

The creation of The Doctor Is In is not simply a broadcast venture; it is a strategic tool for health equity. It helps fill three intersecting needs: (1) delivering health‐education content at scale to children who may otherwise be underserved; (2) providing representation that supports aspiration, belonging, and trust; (3) offering medically accurate, engaging content that supports families and clinicians alike.

As a pediatrician or community clinician serving underserved children, you don’t need a large budget or technical expertise to partner with this effort. Simple steps include:

• Choose 1 episode per year that aligns with a frequent clinical topic in your practice (e.g., hygiene, vaccinations, asthma, healthy eating) and incorporate it into your patient-education workflow.
• Collaborate with local schools, libraries, after‐school programs, or youth groups to host a viewing and discussion event using the show.
• Use the character of Leland (from Good Night Little Doctor) as a bridge to media content in real-life practice. The character already exists in children’s bedtime reading land.
• Ask families which episodes their children enjoyed and what questions they have—this can spark stronger dialog in the next visit.
• Consider tracking informal outcomes: Are families who engage with the media more likely to ask questions, adhere to preventive advice, or express interest in STEM/health careers? Over time, this data may support further outreach.
• Consider having you or your practice sponsor a particular episode or topic.

Limitations must be acknowledged. A children’s media series is not a substitute for high-quality clinical care, structural reforms, or broader public-health interventions. Media outreach cannot alone erase disparities in access, social determinants of health, or systemic bias. But it can be a powerful complement, especially in bridging knowledge, trust, and aspiration.

Conclusion

We believe wholeheartedly that children in underserved communities deserve not only high-quality healthcare, but high-quality health education and aspiration-building opportunities. Through The Doctor Is In, we bring fun, accurate medicine and representation into children’s lives, empowering them and their families with knowledge, curiosity, and belief in their own potential.

When a child watches Leland ask Bervell a question, or sees themselves reflected as the little doctor reading the bedtime book, that child is given not only permission to dream, but also to ask, learn, explore, and eventually be. It shows them that they are enough just the way they are. Pediatricians and community clinicians play a critical role in reinforcing that dream, using this media as a tool for care and connection.

We invite the pediatric field to embrace this kind of content—not as entertainment, but as integral to the health education toolkit. Because when children have both representation and trusted information, we raise the baseline for aspiration, literacy, and health equity.

References

1. “If you see it, you can be it” mantra animates YouTube kids show. AMA News Wire. April 9, 2025. Accessed June 15, 2026. https://www.ama-assn.org/public-health/health-equity/if-you-see-it-you-can-be-it-mantra-animates-youtube-kids-show

2. Improving health literacy using the power of digital communication tools. Fitzpatrick PJ, et al. Health Promot Int. 2023;doi:10.1093/heapro/daac123

3. Joel Bervell: Inspiring the Next Generation Through “The Doctor Is In”. Ron Brown Scholar Program. January 23, 2025. Accessed June 15, 2026. https://ronbrown.org/article/joel-bervell-inspiring-the-next-generation-through-the-doctor-is-in/

4. Health Literacy in the United States: A Report from the Milken Institute. May 2022. Accessed June 15, 2026. https://milkeninstitute.org/sites/default/files/2022-05/Health_Literacy_United_States_Final_Report.pdf

5. Developing Culturally Competent Health Education Materials. Spinner JR, et al. J Prim Care Community Health. 2021;12:21501327211003688. doi:10.1177/21501327211003688