Safe sleep community baby showers to reduce infant mortality risk factors for women who speak Spanish

• Published in: Sleep health 2021-10, Vol.7 (5), p.603-609
• Main Authors: Ahlers-Schmidt, Carolyn R., Schunn, Christy, Hervey, Ashley M., Torres, Maria, Cordoba, Ana Patricia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Child; community health promotion; Female; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Infant; Infant Mortality; Pregnancy; Risk Factors; safe sleep; Sleep; Spanish-speaking; Sudden Infant Death - prevention & control; United States
• ISSN: 2352-7218; 2352-7226
• DOI: 10.1016/j.sleh.2021.07.002

In the United States, sleep-related deaths are one of the primary causes of death for infants age 28 days to one year. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) developed Safe Sleep Recommendations which provide risk reduction strategies for sleep-related infant deaths. Interventions such as Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers have increased knowledge and intentions to engage in these safe sleep behaviors for women who speak English. This study assessed the feasibility, acceptability and initial outcomes of Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers for women who speak Spanish. Six Spanish Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers were held in Sedgwick County, Kansas. One hundred forty-six pregnant or recently delivered women who spoke Spanish completed pre- and post-assessments. Univariate comparisons were made using McNemar's test for paired dichotomous variables. Participants had a high school diploma/General Educational Diploma (GED) or less (75.3%), and were uninsured (52.1%) or had Medicaid (n = 49; 33.6%). The majority reported being very satisfied (n = 130; 89.0%) or satisfied (n = 8; 5.5%). Compared to baseline, significant increases in intentions and confidence to follow the AAP Safe Sleep Recommendations were observed following the events. The majority of participants reported intending to place their infant on the back to sleep (98.6%), use only a safe surface (crib, portable crib, bassinet; 99.3%), and only include safe items (firm mattress, fitted sheet; 93.5%) (all p < .001). Study findings support both feasibility and acceptability of modifying Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate education for women who speak Spanish. Initial outcomes suggest increased intentions to follow safe sleep recommendations.