Mercer Health Earns Top National Recognition for Safe Sleep Practices
The Childbirth Center at Mercer Health has recently received recognition from the National Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program as a “Gold Safe Sleep Hospital.” This designation is given to hospitals that demonstrate a commitment to best practices and education on infant safe sleep, following the guidelines recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
Mercer Health’s dedication to reducing preventable deaths due to sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) and accidental suffocation has led them to become a Nationally Certified Safe Sleep Hospital. Michael H. Goodstein, M.D., neonatologist and medical director of research at Cribs for Kids, which is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, commended the hospital for their efforts: “Sleep-related Death (SRD) results in the loss of more than 3,500 infants every year in the U.S. We know that modeling safe infant sleep in the hospital and providing education to families has a significant effect on infant mortality. Cribs for Kids Hospital Certification Program is designed to recognize those hospitals that are taking an active role in reducing these preventable deaths.”
Ashley Piper, RN, OB Clinical Coordinator for the Childbirth Center at Mercer Health expressed her pride in their efforts: “We have always been promoters of safe sleep. The Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Hospital Certification is an important step in our efforts to provide parents and caregivers with the evidence-based information they need to ensure their babies sleep safely from day one.”
Interested individuals can learn more about the Cribs for Kids National Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program by visiting
