TITLE
Title
PROCLAIM SEPTEMBER AS NATIONAL INFANT MORTALITY AWARENESS MONTH
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SPONSOR
Sponsor
Commissioner Foster
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RESOLUTION
Resolution
September is National Infant Mortality Awareness Month
By the Guilford County Board of Commissioners
Guilford County, North Carolina
WHEREAS, the death of a baby before his or her first birthday is called infant mortality and the infant mortality rate is an estimate of the number of infant deaths for every 1,000 live births; and
WHEREAS, the Guilford County Department of Health and Human Services: Division of Public Health; the Guilford County Coalition on Infant Mortality;
and the Guilford County Child Fatality Prevention Team are celebrating September 2019 as Infant Mortality Awareness Month by promoting safe sleep messaging throughout Guilford County; and
WHEREAS, Guilford County is one of the leading counties in the state for high infant mortality rates with 61 infants who died in 2017, at a rate of 9.8 per 1,000 births; and
WHEREAS, of the 61 infants who died, nine were from sleep-related deaths. Many of these deaths could have been prevented; and
WHEREAS, Public Health follows the recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics which includes placing sleeping infants on a firm sleeping surface,
such as a firm mattress in a crib, covered only with a snug-fitting fitted sheet. Firm sleeping surfaces are surfaces that keep their shape when the infant is placed on them.
Loose bedding, mattress toppers, blankets, stuffed animals, bumpers, positioners, or any other soft object should be removed from the infant’s sleeping area; and
WHEREAS, Public Health encourages all parents and caregivers to promote safe sleep by:
· Always placing your baby on his or her back to sleep, for naps and at night.
· Using a firm sleep surface, such as a mattress in a safety-approved crib, covered by a fitted sheet.
· Dressing baby in no more than one layer of clothing more than an adult would wear to be comfortable a...
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