Welcome New & Returning Hospitals
The toolkit provides turn-key resources to develop an infant safe sleep initiative in your hospital. Resources are available for every safe sleep activity expected of every level of certification. Hospitals are not required to use these tools.
- All resources are free for public use and do not require permission.
- Hospitals may use these resources as is or alter tools to optimize for individual purposes. If tools are altered, we ask for information to be added but not removed from any resource.
To view the toolkit content click the plus sign (+) to expand and the X to collapse each section.
Evidence-Based Practice
ALL LEVELS
Program rigor is developed according to the most current American Academy of Pediatrics evidence-based policies, policy statements, reports, and consultation with medical experts from the AAP Safe Sleep Task Force. To support the implementation of safe sleep policies and practices across your facilities, Cribs for Kids provides access to peer-reviewed articles that ground our Safe Sleep Hospital Certification program in the most recent evidence.
Foundation for Safe Sleep Policy & Practices
Safe Sleep Quality Initiative
Terminology
Legislation
Infant Safe Sleep Policy
ALL LEVELS
The hospital-wide or system-wide Infant Safe Sleep Policy must incorporate current AAP recommendations, elements of the Cribs for Kids’ Safe Sleep Policy Rubric, and the criteria outlined in the Certification Manual. The resources below are provided to assist in the development of an Infant Safe Sleep Policy. The resources include the Infant Safe Sleep Policy Rubric, research articles, and samples of certified hospital policies.
- Applicable to all hospital units providing care for patients less than one year of age.
- Must be in effect for a minimum of 3 months prior to submission.
- Cribs for Kids does not review policies prior to submission.
Note: Many hospitals implement an “Infant Safe Sleep” Lippincott procedure. The result of the official Cribs for Kids Hospital Certification review concludes this procedure falls short of certification requirements. It can supplement the policy as an education tool, however, does not replace the policy.
Healthcare Team Member Training
ALL LEVELS
Healthcare Team member training must meet minimum requirements as outlined in the Training & Evaluation Guide. Onboarding and Annual Safe Sleep training must incorporate current AAP recommendations and the hospital’s infant safe sleep policy. We recommend training include review of the Family/Caregiver education materials. Below are several resources from National Education agencies that offer online safe sleep training modules that are free and allow healthcare team members to earn continuing education credits for completion.
Note: The Hospital Wide All Employee Training Module does not meet requirements for Healthcare Team Member training, but can be used to supplement training.
1. National Institute of Child Health & Development
Risk Reduction for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Other Sleep-Related Causes of Infant Death: A Continuing Education (CE) Activity for Nurses. This learner-led program enables nurses to receive 1.5 CE contact hours by learning about ways to reduce the risk of SIDS and other sleep-related causes of infant death. Note: This module has not been updated to reflect 2022 recommendations. This update is expected in early 2024. This module meets requirements for certification purposes when combined with review of a hospital policy that includes 2022 AAP Recommendations.
Note: An accompanying training element that can be downloaded or ordered:
2. Michigan Department of Health & Human Services
MDHHS offers two free nursing CE courses for safe sleep. The first is a more general course while the second is a wonderful unit on supporting families with safe sleep challenges.
- Infant Safe Sleep for Professionals Working with Families – 1 CE
- Helping Families Practice Infant Safe Sleep – 2 CEs
3. West Virginia's Our Babies: Safe and Sound
Nurses, physicians, and social workers can earn 2 contact hours completing this interactive online module. The Say YES Educator Training Module is a two-part module that can be viewed incrementally, and on any mobile device. Part 1 is an Overview of Sleep Related Infant Deaths presented by Dr. Rachel Moon. Part 2 focuses on the Campaign with Conversations Approach and features two brief vignettes surrounding safe sleep and family education.
4. Texas Health Steps
Provided by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and the Texas Department of State Health Services, “Infant Safe Sleep” training provides 1.5 CEs upon completion.
5. AWHONN
“Nurses Leading Safe Infant Sleep Initiatives in the Hospital Setting” by Sharon Hitchcock and Catherine Ruhl.
AWHONN Membership required – 1.5 CNENICU Specific
Pampers Professional & National Association of Neonatal Nurses
In partnership with NANN, Pampers offers a library of free nursing CEs. Cribs for Kids Medical Advisor, Michael Goodstein, MD, FAAP, provides one of these courses.
Does Not Offer CEs
NCEMCH & NAPPSS Coalition
A Seven Module Series. “Modules are designed to help you understand the Conversations Approach and gain the knowledge and skills needed to implement it to promote breastfeeding and safe sleep practices.”
Family/Caregiver Education
ALL LEVELS
Provide safe sleep education to family/caregivers that incorporates the current AAP recommendations and elements of the hospital safe sleep policy, and Certification Manual. The following options are approved resources and supportive channels providing web-based and written education materials available at no cost. To support the evaluation of caregiver understanding or noncompliance, examples of Acknowledgment and Noncompliance forms have been provided. Cribs for Kids recommends connecting with your State Department of Health to learn if tools are available for specific language challenges in your region.
State, county, or local infant safe sleep educational resources may be available to your hospital. We recommend reviewing those as appropriate. National Resources are available here.
Visit the Cribs for Kids Catalog to explore a variety of educational materials available for purchase. Education items include safe sleep door hangers, posters, badge buddies, and more.
*Purchases from the Cribs for Kids Store support our programs and our mission to reduce SUID and Help Every Baby Sleep Safer*
Safe Sleep Ambassador
One of the primary goals of Cribs for Kids® is to emphasize the importance of Safe Sleep Education and to disseminate it effectively throughout communities. To help us achieve this goal, we developed the Safe Sleep Ambassador – Educational Outreach Program.
Hospitals can use this online, and mobile responsive training to meet the certification requirements for parent/caregiver education.
Cribs for Kids® Educational Tools
See pages 14 & 15 in our Safe Sleep Catalog for teaching tools recommended for hospitals, including our 12 Steps flier, poster, badge, and crib card series.
Other Educational Resources
Supportive Educational Social Media
Documenting Education
Hospitals may choose to provide a tool for healthcare team members to guide their Safe Sleep Education. They may also need to provide documentation should families refuse.
Hospital Website
ALL LEVELS
Safe Sleep Certified hospitals are required to provide Safe Sleep education on the hospital website. Many hospital websites already include information regarding car seat safety and breastfeeding information and will now increase awareness by including safe sleep education. Below are a few examples of certified hospitals appropriately including infant safe sleep on their website.
- Infant Safe Sleep information should be easily accessible via “Infant Safe Sleep” in the search bar of the hospital website.
- Ensure safe sleep imagery displayed across all hospital mediums promote safe sleep practices according to AAP recommendations, Safe Sleep Imagery Guidelines below, and Cribs for Kids Certification Manual.
- Ensure the Infant safe sleep education is easily found within maternity webpages. Remember, the website may link to another page or blog outlining the AAP requirements.
Assess & Refer to Obtain a Crib
With 2022 AAP recommendations, in January 2023 Cribs for Kids announced the January 2024 requirement that hospitals seeking certification need to assess every family being discharged with a patient under one year of age for access to a safe sleep space. If a family is found to be in need, hospitals must provide resources or make referrals to assist the family in obtaining a safe sleep space. Note: Hospitals do NOT need to provide a safe sleep space unless seeking gold certification. Hospitals must, however, assess where baby will be sleeping for naps and nighttime. If baby is found to be without a safe sleep space, hospitals need to provide the family with local/regional resources or referral to in an effort to meet this need.
Cribs for Kids supports this effort with our new tool “Find a Crib”. This tool connects families with their local Cribs for Kids partners and resources. Go to cribsforkids.org/find-a-crib.
Safe Sleep Assessment Samples
Safe Sleep Imagery
ALL LEVELS
Imagery related to infant sleep displayed across all hospital mediums must promote safe sleep practices according to AAP recommendations and the Certification Manual. To support use of safe sleep images, resources provided below outline guidelines, provide a checklist, and offer pre-approved safe sleep images free for hospital use. Hospitals may also find their state or hospital association, or other regional safe sleep organization also provides images.
- Any image that does not meet AAP recommendations and cannot be removed, once all efforts have been exhausted, must display a disclaimer: “Image used for artistic purposes only and does not promote safe sleep according to AAP recommendation.”
Visit the Cribs for Kids’ Store to purchase Artistic Photo Exception Placards.
*Purchases from the store support our programs and our mission to reduce SUID to Help Every Baby Sleep Safer*
Marketing/Communications Team Notification Language
Below is an example of verbiage you can use to encourage your marketing, communications, social media, and/or community departments or personnel to support your Safe Sleep Designation.
Our hospital is working towards earning/is National Infant Safe Sleep Certification from Cribs for Kids (www.cribsforkids.org). To secure/maintain this designation, our hospital must commit to using images of babies that comply with AAP Infant Safe Sleep Recommendations. This includes images of babies sleeping that we use in our on line presence, on our units, or in any marketing or outreach. To assist with meeting this requirement, Cribs for Kids provides photography guidelines as well as free library of safe sleep compliant photos. You can link to these here: [Insert Photo Guidelines]
We appreciate confirmation that your team will join us in this commitment.
Wearable Blanket Program
SILVER & GOLD
“To achieve silver and gold certification, hospitals may implement EITHER Wearable Blanket Distribution OR the Hospital-wide Infant Safe Sleep Training Module. Distribution may be for in-house use AND/OR gifted to caregivers for use after discharge. Hospitals support this effort through direct unit/hospital budgeting or third-party support. Third parties may include: Hospital foundations, voluntary foundations, state or local health departments, rotary, etc.
Wearable blanket funding not directly provided by the hospital must submit documentation demonstrating third-party commitment and financial support. Resources provided below offer examples of language for funding documentation.
Cribs for Kids Wearable Blanket Program
Cribs for Kids is offers deeply discounted pricing on our wearable blanket, the Snoozzzette, and Swaddlette, exclusive to hospitals participating in our Safe Sleep National Hospital Certification Program. Beginning in May 2024, a budget-friendly option will be available. This special hospital pricing and product is another way we support hospitals and their commitment to SIDS/SUID reduction and modeling infant safe sleep. Wearable blankets are recommended by The American Academy of Pediatrics as they cover baby’s body without any risk of covering baby’s head.
All Employee/Hospital-Wide Training
SILVER & GOLD
The All Employee/Hospital-wide Training module prepares healthcare employees across all departments, clinical & non-clinical (including environmental, maintenance, registry, etc.), to identify, assist and/or notify the appropriate healthcare team member if a patient is observed practicing unsafe sleep within the hospital. Promotes all employees to be involved in infant safe sleep on-site and within the community. Accommodates a 9th grade reading level. Any organization may implement this module for use, certified and non-certified hospitals, clinics, etc.
To meet certification requirements for Silver and Gold Levels- assign this Cribs for Kids’ All Employee Hospital-wide Training Module via hospital electronic learning system to every hospital employee within the facility- including all departments, all staff, clinical & non-clinical. Not required of third-party or contracted staff.
This initiative is not mandatory. This was initially developed as an alternative for hospitals unable to fund hospital-wide use/distribution of wearable blankets to achieve a higher level of certification. Note, this is a separate initiative than the required training for clinical employees providing direct bedside care, education, or involved in policy making related to infant care less than one year of age.
This All Employee/Hospital-wide Training module may be implemented to support Silver and Gold level Certification.
- Silver Level: Hospitals must implement EITHER in-house wearable blanket use/distribution OR this “All Employee Hospital-wide Training Module“. It is not required to implement both initiatives.
- Gold Level: Hospitals may choose to implement BOTH in-house wearable blanket use/distribution AND this “All Employee Hospital-wide Training Module“, this initiative will then qualify as one of the two community outreach activities required of gold-level hospitals.
- Additional uses: Training other non-birthing hospitals, training of non-licensed healthcare team remembers.
Preview and request access to the training via Submittable using the buttons below.
Implement QI Measures & Perform Unit Audits
SILVER & GOLD
Develop a holistic safe sleep quality improvement measure requires various implementing various components. Review Hospital Certification Manual of comprehensive criteria regarding implementation and reporting.
One element of the Safe Sleep Quality Improvement (QI) measure requires performing in-house audits of the infant sleep environment in all units providing care for infants under one year of age, modeling the home sleep environment. Departments may include: L&D, PP, NICU, PICU, PEDS. At minimum, audits must include all components of the infant sleep environment listed by the AAP, outlined in our Cribs for Kids Safe Sleep Audit Tool below. Ensure you obtain an appropriate sample size, see resources provided below
- Hospitals may add components to this form, however no components should be removed.
- Include remediation notes if non-compliance is found.
- Audit forms and compiled annual compliance rates are to be submitted with certification applications and annual reports.
Audit Tools
Review the Certification Manual for expectations regarding annual compliance figures related to unit audits. The data from the scheduled (minimum quarterly) audits should be used to compile an overall annual compliance rate for the hospital.
- The Cribs for Kids audit tool is free & available for use.
- Hospitals are not required to use the Cribs for Kids Audit tool, however if the form is used, ensure the most up-to-date version is in use- review annually.
Sample Size Determination
To assist hospitals in determining how many bassinets/cribs to audit for safe sleep compliance, you may want to visit one of these sample size calculators:
Assess & Distribute Safe Sleep Spaces
GOLD
Perform assessments to identify at risk families/caregivers in need of infant safe sleep spaces and distribute safe sleep spaces before discharge. Review Hospital Certification Manual of comprehensive criteria regarding implementation and reporting. Review assessment resources below.
Hospitals support this effort through direct unit/hospital budgeting or third-party support. Third parties may include: Hospital foundations, voluntary foundations, state or local health departments, rotary, etc. Safe Sleep Space funding not directly provided by the hospital, must submit documentation demonstrating third-party commitment and financial support. Resources provided below offer safe sleep space assessment tools and examples of language for funding documentation.
- Ensure Sleep Space meets ASTM standards, is approved by JPMA, and absent of CPSC recalls.
- Cribs for Kids’ manufactures infant safe sleep products to support these efforts! Visit the “Cribs for Kids Safe Sleep Product tab below to review our products. Purchase is not required to achieve certification. All purchases support our free programs and our mission to reduce infant sleep related injuries & death and Help Every Baby Sleep Safer!
Community Outreach
GOLD
Annually engage with the local community about infant safe sleep across a minimum of two channels. Hospitals must connect with community members and stakeholders outside of the hospital to provide infant safe sleep education to those who will not receive the education bedside. Review the Cribs for Kids Hospital Certification Manual for details regarding approved channels for Community Outreach and reporting.
Approved channels include:
- Community Events/Health Fairs – such as community baby showers
- Social Media – an annual minimum of four posts (quarterly throughout the year or weekly during commemorative month).
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- More information provided in the next section titled “Social Media”.
- More information provided in the next section titled “Social Media”.
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- Safe Sleep Education Classes (online/virtual) – for grandparents, siblings, babysitters, or other families not delivering at the hospital.
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- Many prenatal classes do not qualify as the majority of attendees are primary caregivers who plan to deliver at the hospital and will receive the education at bedside. Reach out to the Hospital Certification Team via Contact Us if your hospital implements a robust prenatal class that reaches a significant portion of community members that would not otherwise receive this education at the bedside.
- Many prenatal classes do not qualify as the majority of attendees are primary caregivers who plan to deliver at the hospital and will receive the education at bedside. Reach out to the Hospital Certification Team via Contact Us if your hospital implements a robust prenatal class that reaches a significant portion of community members that would not otherwise receive this education at the bedside.
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- Mass Media – includes public service announcements, outdoor advertising, newspaper/radio/television interview
- Direct Mail – inclusion of safe sleep education in the hospital/system’s magazine/newsletter
- System or Hospital Employee Education
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- Implement the Cribs for Kids Hospital-wide Safe Sleep Training module AND wearable blankets within your hospital.Provide infant safe sleep education to non-birthing hospitals team members within the hospital system via the Cribs for Kids Hospital-wide Infant Safe Sleep Training module, Cribs for Kids Safe Sleep Ambassador (below), or other third-party/ hospital-produced infant safe sleep education.
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- Other – Collaboration with community health agency for safe sleep education; manage safe sleep displays and information in libraries or other community centers, Safe Sleep education to high school or nursing students.
Social Media
ALL LEVELS
To promote infant safe sleep, Cribs for Kids recommends all certified hospitals use social media to educate their community on safe sleep recommendations an annual minimum of four posts (quarterly throughout the year or weekly during commemorative month).
For hospitals seeking or maintaining gold certification use of social media as a channel to promote infant safe sleep meets one of the two minimum outreach requirements.
Note: All social media posts must comply with safe sleep image guidelines
To efficiently and effectively use social media for infant safe sleep hospitals can:
- Share social media posts of Cribs for Kids or other #normalizesafesleep agencies and partners
- Participate in the NICHD’s Safe Sleep Snap
- Use sample posts provided by Cribs for Kids to guide your hospital’s own posts.
- Check with your state or county or other safe sleep agency to learn if any social media content is available.
- The Indiana Hospital Association has developed and approved a guide to be shared and utilized by all certified hospitals and those seeking certification.
Cribs for Kids Safe Sleep Products
ALL LEVELS
To support hospital safe sleep initiatives and the pathway to certification, safe sleep products and education items are available for Cribs for Kids’ Partners to purchase. Though use of Cribs for Kids products is not a requirement, all purchases support Cribs for Kids’ free programs and allow us to continue our mission to reduce SUID and Help Every Baby Sleep Safer.
Cribs for Kids’ products promote AAP safe sleep recommendations, meet safety requirements set by the CPSC, ASTM, JPMA, and are absent of recalls (https://www.saferproducts.gov).
Review our Virtual Product catalog to see items available for purchase including education and teaching materials, wearable blankets, Cribettes, unit specialty items, and more. *Products recommended for certified hospitals can be found on pages 14 and 15.
To obtain a quote and place an order, contact us at contracts@cribsforkids.org.
Hospital Notes Newsletter
ALL LEVELS
On the first Friday of each month, Cribs for Kids delivers the virtual Hospital Notes Newsletter. Certified hospital primary and secondary contact will be emailed direct access. The monthly newsletter links the network of certified hospitals and hospitals working to achieve certification. Here is where important infant safe sleep updates will be shared regarding certification requirements, national and local news, certified hospital innovative practices, up-and-coming events, new products, and applauds the newest members of certified hospitals.
Read Our Past Newsletters
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: © 2023 CRIBS FOR KIDS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED – ALL MATERIALS FOUND WITHIN THIS TOOLKIT ARE ACCESSIBLE TO THOSE HOSPITALS OR FACILITIES THAT MEET THE CRITERIA FOR CERTIFICATION AND HAVE BEEN APPROVED BY CRIBS FOR KIDS, ALL OTHERS WILL NOT BE GRANTED PERMISSION TO UTILIZE THESE MATERIALS.