Top Five Things to Keep your Baby Safe
The South Dakota Regional Infant and Child Mortality Review Committee released a report examining the deaths of infants and children in 2014 and offers preventive strategies to keep your children safe.
Safety tips for infants and children include:
• Make sure your home has working smoke detectors and test them regularly.
• Do not place infants on or near soft bedding, crib bumper pads, or sofas,
particularly while sleeping (even on their backs).
particularly while sleeping (even on their backs).
• Do not smoke or use alcohol while pregnant.
• Keep medications, alcohol, cleaning products, and other chemicals locked or
out of the reach of children.
out of the reach of children.
• Appropriately restrain children while in vehicles.
The Committee serves Minnehaha, Lincoln, Turner, McCook, Lake, Moody, Union, Hanson, Miner, and Brookings counties and is composed of professionals representing expertise in pediatrics, medicolegal death investigations, nursing, law enforcement, child protective services, emergency medical services, and mental health.
In 2014, 72 deaths occurred in the ten-county review area. Of those, 25 deaths met the Committee’s criteria and were reviewed, compared to 32 cases in 2013. Of the 25 reviewed cases, 16 were residents of Minnehaha County, four were from Moody County, two from Lincoln County, one from McCook County, and two from Brookings County.
Eleven children died from natural causes in 2014. Another eight children died as the result of accidents. One difference from previous years is that there were two suicides this year, which was less than the five in 2013. There were no deaths as the result of a homicide, and four deaths were undetermined. No deaths were attributable to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
“The death of a child is always a tragedy. The Committee’s goal is to use the information to decrease the number of childhood deaths by educating the public and advocating for the safety of children,” says Committee Chair and Sioux Falls Fire Rescue Chief Jim Sideras.
The full report has been submitted to the South Dakota Journal of Medicine.
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