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This session will describe the 3rd of three studies conducted in which the patient focus enables nurses to pursue scholarly activities in research. The growth of the patient education program of research was quickly disseminated through the Nursing Research Council (NRC) and Patient Education Council to nurses throughout the institution. Encouraged by their NRC representative, several pediatric nurses were the next group to express interest in the literacy research. To be congruent with an institutional focus on family-centered care and address issues unique to the pediatric population the focus of this study was modified to address literacy and comprehension of parents of hospitalized children. Nurses on the pediatric units, like their psychiatric and oncology counterparts, were realizing that written information that they had available may not be meeting the needs of families. The nurses were concerned that parents did not comprehend written handouts given to them. This concern was supported by questions from parents of children undergoing re-hospitalization. Because parental comprehension of materials in addition to readability of handouts was identified as an important part of pediatric patient care, this study expanded in design as well as in scope. Building upon findings from earlier research, a quasi-experimental study is currently underway to test relative effectiveness of readable materials compared with readable materials enhanced by line drawings versus materials currently on hand.