HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Officials with Tampa Family Health Centers are launching free safe sleep classes to educate parents on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, and how to prevent that risk through safe sleep practices.
“We are teaching classes to our parents, who are our patients, about the importance of safe sleep,” said Dr. Ashley McPhie, Chief Medical Officer for Tampa Family Health Centers.
New and expecting parents who complete the hour-long class will receive a free pack ’n play and educational materials.
“We want to make sure that the safe sleep initiative is really something that is at the forefront of our education,” said Sherry Hoback, President and CEO of Tampa Family Health Centers.
Experts believe preventing SIDS is critically important right now.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are around 3,500 sleep-related infant deaths each year in the United States.
Doctors are seeing that number increase.
“We’ve seen infant deaths rise over the last couple of years really due to COVID, other external factors. Parents don’t always have a safe place to lay their infant down, and we’ve seen an uptick,” said McPhie.
McPhie is working with families to help reduce the number of SIDS cases locally.
She told ABC Action News there are several things parents can do to try to prevent it, including:
- Placing the infant on their back to sleep
- Having a separate sleeping space
- Not smoking in the home
- Having no extra items in the crib, like pillows or blankets
“Those bumpers that we always want to place or wedges to help the child sleep more comfortably, all those things need to be removed from the crib. We want a flat space. Blanket if you use it tucked under the bottom of the child,” said McPhie.
Experts said doing these things can play a big part in preventing needless infant deaths.
These are the types of things parents will learn in the new safe sleep class, educating families on the risks and giving them the necessary supplies to implement safe sleep routines at home.
“To have our team trained and know that our patients are going to be able to be certified in a class and then leave with a pack n' play to go home so we can ensure safe sleep for their babies, and we’re saving lives—there’s no greater gift that we can be giving back to our community,” said Hoback.
You don’t have to be a patient of Tampa Family Health Centers to take the class.
“It’s critically important to our community. Here at Tampa Family Health Centers, we have 15 locations throughout Hillsborough County that have pediatric and OB services,” said Hoback.
You can sign up by calling one of the TFHC locations or going to their website.
