Safe Sleep Day, Friday 5 December

1 December 2015
Safe Sleep Day, Friday 5 December

New Zealand’s national Maori SUDI (Sudden Unexpected Death of an Infant) prevention organisation Whakawhetu is managing Safe Sleep Day, 5 December. Safe Sleep Day is a national campaign devised by Whakawhetu, focused on promoting safe sleep practices for babies, so that every sleep is a safe sleep for young ones.

Safe Sleep Day events this year include:

• In partnership with Te Wananga o Aotearoa (TWoA) – a national Weave-Off. Weavers will be stationed at TWoA sites around the country on Safe Sleep Day, with a goal of weaving as many Wahakura (flax sleeping pods) as possible.
• A Protecting our Mokopuna Seminar at Manukau. These seminars are for community workers and whanau who are concerned about Maori SUDI. The day will be opened by Green Party MP Marama Davidson and feature keynote presentations from SUDI experts Dr David Tipene-Leach, Dr Adrian Trenholme and Professor Ed Mitchell.

Background information

Maori rates of SUDI continue to be much higher than other groups, making up more than 60% of New Zealand’s SUDI deaths every year.

Smoking rates for Maori women are also high. Supporting Maori women to quit during pregnancy must be a priority. It not only improves their overall well-being, but more importantly ensures that the development of the baby’s breathing response is not compromised. This reduces the SUDI risk significantly.

Maori women like many other cultures very much value the closeness and comfort that bedsharing brings but there are dangers in the shared bed, especially for babies whose mothers smoked in pregnancy. These infants have a five times increased risk of SUDI.

Implementing safe sleep practice such as the safe-sleeping device Wahakura is the best solution for these families.

Messages to whanau

Whakawhetu has developed the PEPE model – four simple key messages for whanau about how to make baby safe and prevent SUDI.

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