Community-Academic Partnerships Make a Difference: Using Culturally Appropriate SIDS Risk-Reduction Interventions to Build Awareness in Mississippi's African American Communities

Background: Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), is the leading cause of death among infants 1 month to 1 year old, and claims the lives of thousands each year in the United States. As part of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) “Back to Sleep” campaign, the Mississippi SIDS African American Outreach Project was launched. It is a statewide effort to reduce SIDS among African Americans through education and awareness. The project consist of working with the Mississippi Department of Health, local organizations, churches and community groups to promote the use of culturally tailored SIDS risk-reduction materials developed by the NICHD for the African American community.

Purpose: The NICHD in collaboration with Jackson State University are working to expand and improve coordination and delivery of SIDS risk-reduction information with emphasis being placed in African American pregnant and parenting women, their families, and other care givers of infants younger than one year of age in the state of Mississippi.

Methodology: Mini-grants are awarded to community- and faith-based organizations to implement SIDS risk-reduction activities. Train-the-trainer sessions are conducted for those who provide health and support services are in all nine health district across Mississippi.

Conclusion: It is anticipated that the implementation of the SIDS risk-reduction intervention will increase the awareness in African American communities of the importance of safe sleep practices in an effort to reduce the number of infants who die suddenly and unexpectedly in the state of Mississippi.