SSM Good Sam achieves ‘Safe Sleep Certification’
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SAFE SLEEP CERTIFICATION — SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital in Mount Vernon has been officially certified as a “Bronze Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Hospital.”
Recognition is for infant safe sleep best practices
By TRAVIS MORSE
Submitted Photo
BRONZE CRIBS — Pictured is the Bronze Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Hospital badge.
MOUNT VERNON — SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital in Mount Vernon has been officially certified as a “Bronze Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Hospital.”
According to an SSM news release, this national certification recognizes the hospital’s Women’s Center and Level H Nursery team members for their commitment to best practices in infant safe sleep. This commitment ensures the highest standards of care for the youngest patients, the release states.
“By earning this certification, SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital demonstrates adherence to rigorous guidelines established by the Cribs for Kids® National Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program,” the release states.
Among the specific best practices that SSM Health Good Samaritan has committed to include:
- Promoting safe sleep education on the hospital’s website.
- Promoting hospital-wide infant safe sleep imagery.
- Providing safe sleep training to staff caring for infants less than one year old.
- Providing safe sleep education to families/caregivers of infants less than one year old.
- Implementing a hospital or hospital system-wide Infant Safe Sleep Policy.
“The National Infant Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program launched in 2015,” said Judy Bannon, CEO and founder of Cribs for Kids. “It is rooted in the Safe Sleep Recommendations made by American Academy of Pediatrics and the research that demonstrates families do at home what they see done in the hospital. There are over 500 infant safe sleep certified hospitals across the country and beyond. We are proud to welcome SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital to our program. It will have a profound effect on saving babies’ lives.”
This national certification recognizes hospitals and health systems for their commitment to infant safe sleep to reduce the risk of sudden unexpected infant death (SUID), accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed (ASSB), sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and unsafe sleep injuries, the release states.
“We are truly grateful for this achievement,” said Cindel Polhemus, Regional Manager of Clinical Education at SSM Health in Southern Illinois. “We are so proud of the commitment that our teams have made to infant safe sleep.”
Also, in the news release, SSM Health offered several safety tips to ensure that infants are sleeping safely. They include:
- Alone – Babies should sleep by themselves, in their own sleep space with no other people. Room sharing is recommended, but bed-sharing is not.
- Back – Infants should be placed on their backs for sleep. They will eventually learn how to roll from back to tummy, and from tummy to back. Once they can confidently roll over both ways, it is okay to leave them like that, but always place them on their backs initially.
- Crib – Use a crib, bassinet, or portable bed/pack and play with a firm, flat mattress and a fitted sheet. The crib should not have bumpers of any kind, and nothing should be attached to the crib, such as a monitor or mobile. Babies can sleep in a swaddle until they are eight weeks old and a sleep sack with their arms out after that. According to the AAP, weighted swaddles, weighted clothing or weighted objects on or near the baby are not safe and are not recommended.
For more information, contact SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital.
