HJBR Jan/Feb 2023

54 JAN / FEB 2023 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE bumpers. Inclined sleepers allow babies to sleep at an angle rather than lying flat, and crib bumpers provide cushioning from hard crib bars. Both products have been attributed to sleep-related deaths, includ- ing SIDS. And because this ruling only af- fects sales of new products and does not outlaw the use of these products outright, it begs the question of efficacy among communities and demographics that may rely on hand-me-down products or that cannot afford to purchase new safe sleep items. A prevention pilot In Louisiana, most SUIDs occur when the infant is 2 to 3 months old, with the most common risk factors present among these deaths being infants sleeping with loose bedding or toys (85%), infants sleep- ing in something other than a crib or bas- sinette (83%), and infants sleeping with other people (63%). Five years prior to the signing of the Safe Sleep for Babies Act, Louisiana Healthcare Connections initiated a safe sleep pilot in North Louisiana. Identified as two re- gions of the state with particularly high rates of infant mortality and clear racial disparities, Shreveport and Monroe were the original targets. And because the av- erage cost of a crib is $200, purchasing a new one represents a challenge for most low-income families. For the program, Louisiana Healthcare Connections part- nered with Cribs for Kids — a national non- profit dedicated to providing parents with resources that ensure safe sleep environ- ments for their babies — and “Safe Sleep Survival Kits” were sent to pregnant mem- bers a month before their due date. Provid- ed free at no cost to the member, the kits contain the appropriate crib, educational materials on safe sleep, a wearable blanket, and a pacifier, also shown to help protect against SIDS. After the initial two-year test period showed infant mortality decreasing by more than 50% for members, Louisi- ana Healthcare Connections expanded the program statewide and, to date, has deliv- ered over 10,000 cribs to members expect- ing a baby. Addressing both SDOH and systemic in- equities, the kits are also a personal touch in the all-too-often impersonal world of healthcare. By simply receiving the correct crib and education for how to keep their baby sleeping safely, members reported feeling seen, valued, and empowered — po- tent motivation for a new mom experienc- ing the stress and anxiety of caring for a newborn. n SOURCES 1 Dwyer, M.; Allen, K. “Community Partner- ships Are Critical to Improving Maternal, In- fant Health.” The Pew Charitable Trusts (Jan. 4, 2022). www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and- analysis/articles/2022/01/04/community-part- nerships-are-critical-to-improving-maternal-in- fant-health 2 “In Louisiana, for Louisiana: LSU Fights Rural Health Disparities.” LSU (April 5, 2021). www.lsu. edu/research/news/2021/0405-ruralhealth.php 3 Fields, L. “Sleep Inequity Takes Center Stage in SIDS Recommendations.” Sleep Foundation (Updated July 19, 2022). www.sleepfounda- tion.org/sleep-news/sids-recommendations- account-for-sleep-inequity 4 “Louisiana Child Death Review, 2017-2019 An- nual Report.” Louisiana Department of Health. https://partnersforfamilyhealth.org/2017-2019- cdr-report/ 5 “Sudden Unexpected Infant Death and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: Data and Statistics.” CDC (Last reviewed June 21, 2022). https://www. cdc.gov/sids/data.htm 6 “About SIDS and Safe Infant Sleep.” National In- stitute of Child Health and Human Development (Accessed November 2022). https://safetosleep. nichd.nih.gov/safesleepbasics/about 7 Bigby, J.; Anthony, J.; Hsu, R.; et al. “AnchorRec- ommendations for Maternal Health and Infant Health Quality Improvement in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.” Cen- ters for Medicare and Medicaid Services (Dec. 18, 2022). www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/quality- of-care/downloads/mih-expert-workgroup- recommendations.pdf 8 Shipstone, R.A.; Young, J.; Kearney, L.; Thomp- son, J.M.D. “Applying a Social Exclusion Frame- work to Explore the Relationship Between Sud- den Unexpected Deaths in Infancy (SUDI) and Social Vulnerability.” Frontiers in Public Health 8 (2020): 563573. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2020.563573 9 Moon, R.Y.; Carlin, R.F.; Hand, I. “Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2022 Recommendations for Reducing Infant Deaths in the Sleep Environ- ment.” Pediatrics 150, issue 1 (July 2022). https:// doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-057990 Anative of NewOrleans,MoniqueMcConduitJones, MD,serves as amedical director for Louisiana Health- care Connections. In addition to practicing general pediatrics in community medicine at an FQHC, she has also been actively involved in evaluating health- care utilization and workflow processes at multiple pediatric practices. She provided care for a large pediatric population in an outpatient setting and, for a year, managed inpatient pediatric patients as a hospitalist at Children’s Hospital in New Orleans in addition to caring for newborns at Touro Hospital Newborn Nursery.Jones is a graduate ofXavier Uni- versity,UTMB at Galveston,and UTHealth Houston, School of Public Health. “About one-third of all infant (less than 1 year of age) deaths in Louisiana are potentially preventable, with most injury-related deaths occurring in the sleep environment.”