Renown Children’s Hospital recently became the first hospital in Nevada to be recognized by the National Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program, demonstrating its commitment to best practices and education on infant safe sleep.
With 4,000 infant sleep-related deaths in the U.S. annually, getting the word out about safe sleep practices is crucial to saving lives.
“We are honored to lead the way in safe sleep in our state by educating families on safe sleep environments for infants,” said Natalie Nicholson, MBA, MSN, RN, CNML, director of nursing,
Renown Children’s Hospital. “This certification is an example of the excellent teamwork we have at Renown as there were many employees involved with making this certification a reality.”
Renown Children’s Hospital achieved the highest level of certification as a certified Safe Sleep Champion. This certification requires a hospital to have a safe sleep policy in place and staff trained on the policy, offer education for parents, use sleep sacks instead of receiving blankets, provide community and media outreach on safe sleep and keep a record of progress and successes.
“We understand that it can be overwhelming to have a new baby in the house and with all the information coming at parents, we want to make sure we provide clear and simple guidance on safe sleep,” said Nicholson. “It’s important for caregivers to know what a safe sleep environment is – the baby is alone in a crib but sharing a room with the parents, on his or her back, and with no blankets, pillows, toys or loose bedding. We are giving parents a sleep sack as a gift to take home to continue the safe sleep practice.”
The National Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program was created by Cribs for Kids, an organization dedicated to preventing infant, sleep-related deaths due to accidental suffocation. It was created in partnership with leading infant health and safety organizations such as All Baby & Child, The National Center for the Review & Prevention of Child Deaths, Association of SIDS and Infant Mortality Programs, Kids In Danger, Children's Safety Network, American SIDS Institute, Charlie's Kids, CJ Foundation for SIDS, and numerous state American Academy of Pediatric chapters and health departments.
