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Westchester County Rolls Out Safe Sleep Campaign for Babies

Safe Sleep Image

Reinforces Best Sleep Practices for Parents and Caregivers

 In an effort to ensure that Westchester’s babies are safe and protected while they sleep, the Westchester County Department of Health and the Westchester County Department of Social Services have launched the “Safe Sleep” ad campaign to create greater awareness about safe sleep practices.

Infants ages four months or younger are at the highest risk of sleep-related injury death. Three quarters of sleep-related injury deaths involve an unsafe sleep surface and include more than one other unsafe environmental risk factor such as an unsafe sleep location, excess bedding, bed-sharing/co-sleeping and unsafe sleep position.

The “Safe Sleep” campaign focuses on five basic measures for an optimal sleeping environment in which babies are:

  • Always on their backs
  • Never with pillows, blankets or toys in the crib
  • Always on a firm, flat mattress
  • Never in a bed shared with people or pets
  • Not over-dressed or in an over-heated room (maintain 68º - 72ºF)

Some additional safety guidelines include allowing infants to sleep in the parents’ room -- ideally for the first year of life but at least for the first six months -- in a crib, bassinet, Pack ‘N Play or Baby Box, and always in a smoke-free environment.

The ads target all demographics and are installed on the County’s Bee-Line buses, are prominently displayed at the County Center and will be circulated online for maximum exposure.

Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins said: “Maternal and infant outcomes have been major issues of focus recently in the County, with important initiatives such as the Birth Equity Improvement Project and the launch of the TeamBirth Program by St. John’s Riverside Hospital. The safe sleep campaign goes hand-in-hand with these other public health measures for a healthier Westchester. We aim to educate and re-educate mothers, fathers and all caregivers on how to make sleep-time, safe-time for all our babies.”

Westchester County Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Sherlita Amler said: “To avoid tragedy and keep our littlest ones safe while they sleep, it is so important that every parent, grandparent and caregiver place babies to sleep on their backs, alone and in a crib for every nap and bedtime. We see so many images of babies posed for sleep surrounded by cozy blankets, fluffy pillows and cute toys that could smother them. These images send an unintentional but dangerous message, and do not promote a safe sleep environment. Unfortunately, a few moments in an unsafe situation can cause a lifetime of regret for the parents and the loss of a young life that could have been prevented.”

Westchester County Department of Social Services Commissioner Leonard Townes said: “Every year, more than 3,500 children in the United State die as a result of unsafe sleep practices. These tragedies are preventable but they often occur because loving and caring parents don’t make the right choice. They make the mistake of sharing a bed with an infant, or putting an infant to sleep with soft objects like pillows, blankets and bumpers. We want to make sure every parent gets the message: you can protect your child by following simple safe sleep practices. By using County buses to deliver that message to 27 million riders annually, we have an opportunity to save the lives of Westchester's youngest residents.”

For more information, visit https://health.westchestergov.com/safe-sleep or call the Westchester County Department of Health at (914) 813-5000.