5 reasons to Attend the 2019 Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Conference

Approximately 3500 infants die each year in the United States from sleep-related deaths including Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and strangulation or asphyxiation due to unsafe sleep environments. The devastating effects that infant mortality cause in our communities is heartbreaking. We in the safe sleep community believe that through persistence in safe sleep education, programming, changes in legislation, and continued research, many of these deaths can be avoided. We are busy preparing for our 6th Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Conference which is the first of it’s kind to bring together advocates of safe sleep education, medical experts, researchers, and proponents of consistent classification and coding of sudden unexpected infant deaths under one roof. This year’s conference will be, once again, held in Pittsburgh, PA., the home of Cribs for Kids Headquarters.

Our last conference addressed the need to further reduce infant mortality rates locally and nationally by targeting and utilizing existing program resources; creating partnerships through community leadership collaborations, and providing organizations with the tools needed for a unified infant safe sleep effort. For the 2019 conference, our goal is to start a conversation about how we can actively reach broader audiences and spread the safe sleep message more effectively using technology, social media, and marketing. We want to embrace technology and use the tools that are available to us today so that we can make infant safe sleep practices the social norm and promote the health, safety, and the well-being of all infants. So much work is being done by the safe sleep community, now it’s time to work toward changing the culture surrounding infant sleep practices. There are so many reasons to attend this groundbreaking conference, this list just skims the surface. Are you doing everything you can to lower the infant mortality rates in your community?

 

 

 

Embrace Technology

The theme of the 2019 conference is Embracing Technology. All of our goals are the same. We want to reach as many families and caregivers as possible with our safe sleep message. Using the tools at our disposal, how can we work together to maximize our impact? Attend panel discussions on best practices in social media and educational app use. Learn ways to boost your audience reach using established partnerships. Explore the latest advancements in digital marketing with industry experts. We want you to share your big ideas as you form valuable social media partnerships that will increase your reach across all platforms.

 

 

 

Celebrate Advancements in Research

We are witnessing a real change with the groundbreaking work being done by top medical researchers and data scientists as they join forces to unlock the mystery of SIDS. Learn more about these miraculous advances from keynote speaker John Kahan. The Aaron Matthew Research Foundation, named after John and Heather Kahan’s son who died of SIDS shortly after his birth, was established to fund much-needed research in this field at Seattle Children’s Hospital Integrative Brain Research Institute (Seattle Children’s). Researchers from Seattle Children’s, New York University, Langone Medical Center, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, University of Virginia, the University of Auckland and the University of Bristol England are working directly with data scientists from Microsoft to combine forces, using big data and AI to prevent infant deaths. Learn ways that you can support this research as a Cribs for Kids partner.

 

 

 

 

 

Maximize Your Cribs for Kids Partnership

Since 1998, Cribs for Kids has been providing safe-sleep education to families with the intervention of a safe, portable crib to those who cannot otherwise afford a safe place for their babies to sleep. As a Cribs for Kids Partner, you join us in our mission of helping every baby sleep safer. Together we are the soldiers of change. Learn how to become a partner or to maximize your existing partnership with breakout sessions on Cribs for Kids programs, educational tools, and products. Addressing and correcting your communities infant mortality rate is within reach with Cribs for Kids programs such as the Safe Sleep Ambassador program, the Hospital Certification program, the Managed Care Organization Incentive program, the National Public Safety Initiative, and the International Military Hospital Initiative. We believe that, together with our partners, we can create a movement that will someday end Sudden Unexplained Infant Death. Through widespread programming, education efforts, ongoing research, and changes in legislation, this dream CAN eventually become a reality.

 

 

 

 

Network to Affect Change

This conference is the only infant safe sleep event that brings proponents of safe sleep education and programming, top advocates from the fields of medicine and research, and advocates of reform in the way infant deaths are investigated under one roof. It will bring Cribs for Kids Partners from across the country to meet and compare best practices and at the same time give prospective partners an opportunity to learn about ways to begin a Cribs for Kids Program in their own communities. Professionals, from throughout the country, will start a national dialogue that will address the importance of education for parents and caregivers regarding infant safe sleep practices and the need for accurate and consistent classification and coding of sudden unexplained infant deaths. Share your organization’s big ideas while learning from others successes. Don’t miss your chance to experience the ultimate icebreaker, the Big Idea Ball Pit! I know we can’t be the only well-adjusted adults that would like to spend time in an adult-sized ball pit, right?

 

 

 

 

Enjoy Yourself!

If you absolutely need another reason to attend, don’t discount a visit to Pittsburgh as a contender. Pittsburgh is the only U.S. city in the London issue of National Geographic Traveller’s cool cities to visit in 2019. Af&co, Restaurant & Hospitality Consultants, says Pittsburgh is the food city of the year for 2019, and Pittsburgh makes Endless Vacation’s top reasons to travel in 2019. Our conference outing to PNC Park to take in a Pirate’s game will give you a chance to take in the most breathtaking views of the city and the best stadium food around. Although we work hard, learn from each other and make valuable connections at the conference, we always take the time to play hard and celebrate our thriving community.

 

 

 

 

REGISTER TODAY! 

Join us from April 23rd – 26th as we combine forces in our mission to help every baby sleep safer! Click HERE for more information on the 6th Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Conference.