Saint Anthony's Partners with SIDS of Illinois

Little Drake William Weathers shows off his "This Side Up - Put Me On My Back To Sleep" t-shirt, courtesy of Sudden Infant Death Services (SIDS) of Illinois. Newborns in Saint Anthony's Women's Pavilion receive the free t-shirts as part of a SIDS educational initiative to teach parents about recommended sleeping positions for babies. Born on May 21, Drake is being held by his mother, Ivy, as his proud sister Kennadi, age 3, looks on with Paula McKenney, a registered nurse with Saint Anthony's Women's Pavilion.

New moms in Saint Anthony’s Women’s Pavilion will know about the importance of “tummy time” and “back to sleep” for their newborns with the help of free baby t-shirts and educational materials, courtesy of the Sudden Infant Death Services of Illinois.

“Recent studies show that babies who sleep on their stomachs are much more likely to die of SIDS than babies who sleep on their backs,” says Julie Ashlock, RN, Director of Saint Anthony’s Women’s Pavilion. “But while baby is awake, parents should be encouraged to give their babies supervised tummy time to help reduce the incidence of positional head molding and to help make their upper bodies strong.”

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the sudden, unexplained death of an infant under one year of age. One of the suggested tips for reducing the risk of SIDS includes to always place the baby on his/her back to sleep. Since 1994, the “Back to Sleep” national campaign to Reduce the Risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome has dramatically decreased the number of infant deaths from SIDS, according to SIDS of Illinois. In Illinois alone, the infant mortality rate has dropped 68 percent since 1993.

As part of the gift packets given to moms in the Women’s Pavilion, each baby receives a onesie t-shirt that reads: “This Side Up. Put Me On My Back To Sleep.” Tips for reducing the risk of SIDS and accidental suffocation are included in informational brochures, geared for parents, grandparents and child care providers.

“The nurses in the Women’s Pavilion review materials with new parents as part of their infant care education,” Ashlock says. “We are grateful to SIDS of Illinois for providing our parents with this important information.”

For more information about the SIDS infant care education, call Saint Anthony's Women's Pavilion at 618/465-BABY (2229).