Nothing impacts a family or community more than an infant’s death.
And the potential for such a situation has prompted the McKean County District Attorney’s Office and McKean County Department of Human Services to work on recommendations for additional infant safety educational services for parents.
“To promote infant safety, various agencies have made it part of their mission to advise parents on safe sleeping practices that are simple ABC steps,” county officials said in a press release. “Babies sleep safest Alone, on their Backs and in a Crib.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics and other organizations revealed in reports that accidents, sleep-related deaths and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome are the most common causes of death among healthy infants, said Kim Crouse, executive director of the Bright Alternatives Pregnancy Care Center, headquartered in Bradford. And infants between one month and one year of age are most at risk of death, she said.
“Bright Alternatives is very passionate about educating parents and equipping them with the information and resources they need to make their home a safe environment for their children,” she said. “Beyond our basic pregnancy and labor and delivery education, the bulk of our parenting education program is dealing with keeping your children safe, starting in the womb and continuing into toddler years.”
Crouse said her parents’ generation –– and generations before them –– would have been instructed to place the baby on its belly in case the infant spits up. However, studies revealed the risk of aspiration is not as great as the potential for suffocation, she said.
At Foothills Medical Group at Bradford Regional Medical Center, Dr. Joseph Goro said that all of the rooms in the pediatric office have a poster of the ABCs of sleep.
“We also have a five-page informational document that is in all newborn packets on their first visit,” he said. “The ABCs of Safe Sleep teach parents to place infants alone, with no obstructions such as loose blankets or pillows that could interfere with breathing, on their backs and in their own cribs as co-sleeping or sleeping on soft couches can be dangerous for infants. The ABCs are a major initiative to help prevent SIDS.”
According to information from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, a baby’s sleep area should be in the same room as a parent. Also, parents should provide the baby with lots of tummy time when he or she is awake and with someone watching, according to the institute.
“Give your baby a dry pacifier that is not attached to a string for naps and at night to reduce the risk of SIDS,” the institute states.
In addition, individuals should also follow health care provider guidance on a baby’s vaccines and regular health checkups.
“Babies do not come with instruction manuals, but there is plenty of help from reliable and trustworthy people and agencies,” Crouse said. “Feeding recommendations, car seat regulations, and accident prevention are some of the most commonly asked questions we see at the center.”
And Crouse also said that caregivers and parents often fail to remember that they need to take care of themselves.
For more information on safe sleeping and on how to acquire a crib, parents can contact Deb at McKean County Cribs for Kids at 814-368-0426.
Bright Alternatives also operates a program called Our Beds for Babies, which began as a way to make sure parents have the information needed to be able to parent and also to provide a new crib and mattress for the infant, Crouse said. The center can be reached at 814-368-3388.
