Infant Safe Sleep: An Evaluation Of Infant Safe Sleep Practices In The Hospital Setting

Objective: To evaluate nurses’ knowledge and beliefs about infant safe sleep best practices and to determine the degree to which the American Academy of Pediatrics'(AAP) recommendations for infant safe sleep was modeled and parent education was given by nurses at Hutzel Women’s Hospital (HWH).

Background: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) accounts for too many infant deaths, many of which result from modifiable risk factors and are therefore preventable. Parent education and modeling of infant sleep practices by nurses is imperative to help reduce SIDS. 

Design: Mix methods qualitative and quantitative descriptive study

 Setting: Hutzel Women’s Hospital in Detroit, Michigan.  HWH is one of Michigan's largest birthing institutions delivering 5000 babies each year.

Sample: 50 Mothers; 50 Infants; 41 Nurses

Methods: Wayne State University Internal Review Board (IRB) approval was attained prior to study procedures.  Qualitative and quantitative methods such as structured interviews with mothers (N=50), observing infants (N=50) in their cribs, and assessing nurses’ (N=41) beliefs and knowledge about infant safe sleep best practices using the Infant Safe Sleep Knowledge questionnaire were used. Descriptive statistics were used to describe nurses’ beliefs about SIDS/SUIDS risk factors and knowledge about AAP infant safe sleep recommendations. Chi-square analyses were used to examine relationships between nurses’ beliefs about SIDS/SUID risk factors and nurses’ personal characteristics. Pearson correlations and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were conducted to describe relationships between nurses’ beliefs and knowledge of AAP infant safe sleep risk practices. 

Results: The nurses were very knowledgeable about the AAP infant safe sleep best practice recommendations, with few areas of knowledge deficit identified. Both the quantitative observation data and the qualitative data from mothers’ comments indicated that nurses modeled infant safe sleep best practices and taught parents about infant safe sleep recommendations by strongly encouraging parents to place their infants on his or her back

Conclusion/Implications for nursing practice: Perinatal nurses at HWH teach, model, and reinforce safe sleep practices to new mothers and families during hospitalization and prior to discharge. The nurses’ practice is appropriate and is consistent with the AAP infant safe sleep recommendations.

Nurses’ significant role working with families of newborn infants places them in a key position to have an impact on sudden infant death syndrome.  Hospitals should provide nurses with ongoing continuing education to ensure that nurses remain current with safe sleep recommendations to educate patients and model safe sleep practices.

Keywords:  infant safe sleep, nursing practice