Safe Sleep Environment; Take The Steps to Prevent SUID

Presented by: Cyndy Wright-Johnson, MSN RN; Director EMS for Children MIEMSS

Room 201

Sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) is a term used to describe the sudden and unexpected death of a baby less than 1-year old in which the cause was not obvious before investigation. The causes of sleep related infant death include entrapment, strangulation, suffocation, and sudden infant death syndrome. Nearly 3500 infants die each year in the USA. In Maryland, 264 infants died in the five years between 2015-2019. These deaths often happen during sleep or in the baby’s sleep area. Come learn the A B Cs that need to take place in every home in Maryland so that 9-1-1 responding first responders (Law Enforcement, EMS, Fire & Rescue) do not have to start clinical ABCs. Creating a safe sleep environment is not expensive. Safe Sleep positioning needs to occur every time – in Maryland only 19% of the infants who died were in a crib or bassinet yet 61% had one available. This presentation will focus on the prevention teaching tools for community outreach, the items to look for in a quick ‘home scan’ when responding, and the new (2021) investigation tools (dolls) available to forensic investigators in Maryland after a SUID case is identified.

Learning Objectives: 

1. Discuss the importance of Alone, Back and Crib as a daily practice for infant safe sleep.
2. Recognize the contributing factors in the home environment that lead to SUID cases.
3. Differentiate between SUID and SIDS.
4. Describe the purpose of the doll reenactment protocol as part of the forensic investigation after an infant death.

THIS CLASS HAS BEEN APPROVED FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS BY MIEMSS