Campaigning for crib donations

The Fund for Public Health in New York, a non-profit organization that supports the City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) has recently launched an online campaign to extend their Cribs for Kids program.
Having provided more than 1,600 cribs since May 2007, the Health Department’s Cribs for Kids program gives out cribs to eligible families through the South Bronx, Harlem and Central Brooklyn.
The Fund’s goal is to raise enough money so that it may distribute 250 cribs this holiday season. A $100 donation will cover a complete “safe sleep survival kit,” which consists of sheets, netting, a crib and sleep-sack pajamas.
“Times are tough for New York City families,” said Deborah Kaplan, Assistant Commissioner for Maternal, Infant and Reproductive Health at the DOHMH. “But no family should lack a safe place for a new baby to sleep. Putting your baby to sleep on his or her back in a crib with no soft bedding will lower the risk of suffocation and SIDS. By providing cribs and education to families in need, we can help prevent these tragedies.”
Since 2007, the DOHMH has worked with the National Cribs for Kids program. Through its Newborn Home Visiting Program, which serves new parents with one visit from a health educator, the agency has already visited close to 8,000 families since only last year.
The DOHMH also distributes cribs and educates parents through its Nurse-Family Partnership, a program for first-time mothers that begins at pregnancy and ends when her child is two years old.
Putting a baby to sleep with an adult or another child elevates the risk of the baby suffocating, especially if the adult or child is obese, or if the adult has been drinking alcohol or using drugs.
Babies should always be put to sleep on their backs. “Tummy time” when the baby is awake can develop and build a baby’s muscles and prevent the baby’s head from flattening. Objects such as pillows, stuffed animals and bumpers should be removed from a baby’s crib.
To make a donation to the Fund for Public Health in NY, you can call 212-266-7824 or on the web go to www.fphny.org.