Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement
Category
Child & Family Health
Child's Age
Prenatal, 0-1 years
Participant
Parents/Guardian
Languages
English, Spanish
Brief Description
Families receive education and resources from professionals who care for them around Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement with the goals of increasing family members’ knowledge of safe sleep practices and reducing the risk of infant mortality and sleep-related deaths. The curriculum addresses key terms and current trends in sleep-related infant deaths; current safe sleep recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP); and the identification of free resources for additional patient and provider support as needed.
Expected Impact
- Increase in parent knowledge of safe sleep practices
Core Components for Model Fidelity
- Parent Education Curriculum: Parents and caregivers receive support from professionals through prenatal counseling and post-birth education on safe sleep practices to reduce the risk of infant mortality. All resources are available for free through the Collaborative for Maternal and Infant Health (CMIH) of UNC Chapel Hill. The curriculum was developed by Safe Sleep NC based on data and information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
- Alignment with American Academy of Pediatrics: The selected curriculum and materials align with guidelines set forth by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Languages Materials are Available in
English, Spanish
Delivery Mode
Delivery of safe sleep education to families can be conducted in-person, via home visits, group meetings, or virtual group meetings.
Dosage
Parent education around safe sleep practices begins in the prenatal period and continues through the infant’s first year of life. Safe Sleep NC recommends that safe sleep education be provided to parents/caregivers across multiple visits and engagements (as opposed to in a single stand-alone workshop or onetime visit) to allow time to reflect on materials and provide time for relationship building between parents and educators. It is recommended that educators meet with families 3 times during the first year.
Infrastructure for Implementation
Materials: Safe Sleep NC free resources may be ordered for free delivery, and other resources may be printed from their website. Safe Sleep NC has several free resources to support professionals in engaging families to promote safe sleep.
Staffing Requirements
The Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement training by Safe Sleep NC is designed for professionals who care for families with infants. This may include early childhood educators, home visitors, parent educators, medical providers, or other professionals.
Training for Model Fidelity
The Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement training for professionals who work with families is a 1 hour online self-paced module. It is possible for the training to be delivered in-person in NC or by live virtual training. Training participants will receive 1.0 nursing contact hour upon viewing the entire recorded training session and completing the post-evaluation survey. UNC CMIH is approved as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the North Carolina Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
Contact Information
Register for the training: https://unc-cmih.thinkific.com/courses/SafeSleepFamilyEngagement
Learn more about Safe Sleep NC: https://safesleepnc.org/
Megan Canady: megancanady@med.unc.edu, 704-771-6573
Erin McClain: emcclain@email.unc.edu
Liz Soto: elizabeth_soto@med.unc.edu
Cost Estimates
Safe Sleep NC's training, Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement, is free and non-commercial. All resources for professionals are free.
NCPC Evidence Categorization
Evidence Informed – Industry Standard
Research Summary
The Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement training for professionals and associated parent education curriculum are provided via Safe Sleep NC through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Center for Maternal and Infant Health and are based on the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The most recent AAP recommendations were published in 20221 and accompanied by a summary of supporting evidence.2 Each year in the U.S., approximately 3,500 infants die from sleep-related causes, including sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), accidental suffocation, and unexplained deaths. To explain SIDS, the AAP describes the Triple Risk Model which identifies the intersection of three risk factors: intrinsic vulnerability, critical development period, and external stressors. Disparities persist, especially among non-Hispanic Black and American Indian/Alaska Native populations, who suffer higher rates of sleep-related infant deaths than other racial and ethnic groups.
The AAP outlines 19 evidence-based recommendations to promote safe sleep. These recommendations cover a range of topics, such as sleep positions, sleep surfaces, room sharing, bed sharing, pacifier use, human milk feeding, avoiding overheating and use of sitting devices such as car seats and swings, swaddling, tummy time, avoiding home monitors, and immunizations. Key updates since the last recommendations published in 2016 include: stronger emphasis on equity, cultural sensitivity, and structural racism; discouraged use of weighted blankets/swaddles, bed sharing, and inclined sleep surfaces; precautions when using cradleboards (may be culturally appropriate); and expanded guidance related to emergency sleep surfaces such as boxes or baskets.
The AAP emphasizes the importance of the media and manufacturers promoting safe sleep in their messaging and products. Ongoing research is crucial to better understand SIDS, SUID, and other sleep-related infant deaths. Safe sleep education for parents and caregivers should begin prenatally and be culturally sensitive and non-judgmental.
- ^ See “Sleep-related infant deaths: Updated 2022 recommendations for reducing infant deaths in the sleep environment” (2022). This report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) describes the latest recommendations for safe sleep practices to reduce the likelihood of sleep-related infant deaths. In the U.S., approximately 3,500 infants die each year from sleep-related causes including sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), accidental suffocation, and unexplained deaths. The authors describe the Triple Risk Model which explains SIDS as the intersection of three risks: intrinsic vulnerability, critical development period, and external stressors. Disparities persist, especially among non-Hispanic Black and American Indian/Alaska Native populations, who suffer higher rates of sleep-related infant deaths than other racial and ethnic groups. These recommendations provide key definitions for SIDS, sudden unexpected infant death (SUID), sleep-related death, bed sharing, and room sharing. The AAP provides 19 recommendations to reduce sleep-related infant deaths including but not limited to the following: sleeping in a supine position; human milk feeding for the first 6 months of life; avoiding loose bedding, head coverings, and overheating; avoiding smoke, nicotine, alcohol, marijuana, and other substances; and receiving regular prenatal care and immunizations. The most notable updates since the last recommendations in 2016 are as follows: stronger emphasis on equity, cultural sensitivity, and structural racism; discouraged use of weighted blankets/swaddles, bed sharing, and inclined sleep surfaces; precautions when using cradleboards (may be culturally appropriate); and expanded guidance related to emergency sleep surfaces such as boxes or baskets. The AAP also emphasizes the importance of the media and manufacturers promoting safe sleep in their messaging and products. It is crucial that research is ongoing to better understand SIDS, SUID, and other sleep-related infant deaths. Safe sleep education for parents and caregivers should begin prenatally and be culturally sensitive and non-judgmental.
- ^ See “Evidence base for 2022 updated recommendations for a safe infant sleeping environment to reduce the risk of sleep-related infant deaths” (2022). This technical report summarizing the evidence and rationale behind the updated American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and other sleep-related infant deaths. Public health campaigns in the 1990s resulted in sharp declines in the rate of SIDS (approximately 75%) and other sleep-related infant deaths. However, this rate has plateaued since 2000. Around 3,500 infants die annually in the U.S. from sleep-related causes, including SIDS, accidental suffocation, and unexplained deaths. Disparities persist as some racial and ethnic groups, including non-Hispanic Black and American Indian/Alaska Native populations, suffer higher rates of sleep-related infant deaths than others. The authors delve into the pathophysiology and risk models for SIDS and other sleep-related infant deaths as well as the epidemiology and trends in SIDS and other sleep-related deaths in infancy, also known as sudden unexpected infant deaths (SUIDs). For example, the authors describe the Triple Risk Model which explains SIDS as the intersection of three risks: intrinsic vulnerability, critical development period, and external stressors. In this report, the AAP outlines 19 evidence-based recommendations to promote safe sleep. These recommendations relate to sleep positions, sleep surfaces, room sharing, bed sharing, pacifier use, human milk feeding, avoiding overheating and use of sitting devices such as car seats and swings, swaddling, tummy time, avoiding home monitors, and immunizations. See Sleep-related infant deaths: Updated 2022 recommendations for reducing infant deaths in the sleep environment (2022) for specific details and descriptions of each recommendation. The AAP closes their report by emphasizing the importance of safe sleep education that is culturally sensitive and begins prenatally.
Moon, R. Y., Carlin, R. F., & Hand, I. (2022). Sleep-related infant deaths: Updated 2022 recommendations for reducing infant deaths in the sleep environment. Pediatrics, 150(1), e2022057990. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-057990
Moon, R. Y., Carlin, R. F., Hand, I., & The Task Force on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and The Committee on Fetus and Newborn. (2022). Evidence base for 2022 updated recommendations for a safe infant sleeping environment to reduce the risk of sleep-related infant deaths. Pediatrics, 150(1), e2022057991. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-057991
Local Partnerships Currently Implementing
Local Partnerships in purple have adopted Infant Safe Sleep and Family Engagement. Local Partnership contact information can be found here.