Childcare centres to crackdown on baby sleep practices

Parents requests about their baby’s sleep routines at childcare will soon be ignored and overruled by staff, under a new national child safety crackdown.

In a bid to reduce cases of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, staff will ignore the wishes of parents who want their babies to sleep on their front or side, unless a valid medical reason is provided.

The Herald Sun report the strict guidelines will be enforced from October 1 by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority.

Parents who want staff to swaddle or wrap the arms of babies over three months old, or to wrap babies who are old enough to roll, will also be overruled unless they have a doctor’s endorsement.

Author and lactation consultant Pinky McKay said parents who hand over children to childcare staff “hand over the responsibility”.

“It’s good to think uniform standards are now in place,” she said.

“As the national authority on infant safe sleeping, Red Nose welcomes changes to the National Law and Regulations that require child care centres to have policies and procedures for sleep and rest of children and infants,” said Yvonne Amos, Red Nose’s General Manager Marketing, Communications and Income Development.

“This change will ensure consistency in child care centres across the country so that every child will be slept according to Red Nose’s safe sleeping guidelines, which have reduced the rate of sudden unexpected death in infancy in Australia by 80 per cent and saved 9,450 lives.”

SIDS recommends:
How to Sleep your Baby Safely:
1. Sleep baby on the back from birth, not on the tummy or side
2. Sleep baby with head and face uncovered
3. Keep baby smoke free before birth and after
4. Provide a safe sleeping environment night and day
5. Sleep baby in their own safe sleeping place in the same room as an adult caregiver for the first six to twelve months
6. Breastfeed baby

I am surprised to be honest. I thought safe sleep practices would always be followed first over a parents preference?

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19 Comments

- - mom101628 said
  - 12 Oct 2017
    11:04 pm
About time this was adopted. Thanks for the post.

- - ella12 said
  - 03 Oct 2017
    10:53 am
In the interest of health and safety, then I think this is a good idea to follow the safe sleeping guidelines.

- - mom93821 said
  - 30 Sep 2017
    5:37 pm
Staff have a duty of care and of course would have to follow national guidelines.

- - mom94125 said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    9:10 pm
i thought that they would be doing this regardless already! well hopefully this will be effective

- - tessie said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    2:34 pm
I can’t believe I used to put my boys to sleep on their sides. Maybe I was just lucky? I would have thought that lying them on their backs, if they vomited, could block their airways.

- - mom90758 said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    12:54 pm
It looks very sensible to me to follow the safe sleeping guidelines. I thought they already did!!

- - mom64736 said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    11:33 am
I think this makes perfect sense. I didn’t know you can’t wrap a baby over 3 months of age though. But my baby years are behind me now. I certainly think most parents should be given information on safe sleeping practices. I wonder if child care centres will give parents an explanation of why they won’t do it and a pamphlet on the saftey guidelines.

- - sars_angelchik said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    11:12 am
Good ideas – I always followed what was recommended, however, once a child is old enough to roll they will often just roll onto their tummy anyway- both of mine did.

- - rovermum said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    10:40 am
I think this is fantastic. It just makes things very clear. SIDS research cannot be ignored and I imagine any parent would be happy with this new rule.

- - taynik46 said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    8:10 am
i can’t imagine why (unless for medical reasons) parents wouldn’t be following the SIDS safe sleeping recommendations?

Good to see something rolled out across the country for the safety of children, I hope that childcare places have success going against the parents wishes!

- - Ellen said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    8:07 am
A good thing indeed ! Safety first, certainly when you carry responsibility over another persons child.

- - mom206279 said
  - 28 Sep 2017
    7:04 am
I can’t believe this wasn’t already a thing.

- - henrie_01@yahoo.com.au said
  - 27 Sep 2017
    10:05 pm
I was advised not to wrap or swaddle a child after they can roll. I am surprised when I hear about children swaddled until the age of 2 or more.

- - rachel1970 said
  - 27 Sep 2017
    6:50 pm
Good they are changing the regulations and making it uniform.

- - mom247592 said
  - 27 Sep 2017
    6:10 pm
I’m glad that they are changing the regulations. I’m sure it will be hard on a few families, but it’s better than a tragedy occurring and the blame being placed on a service for poor policy.
- cherz replied
  
  27 Sep 2017 , 7:58 pm
  Well said mom 247592 and I agree.
- - ceelicious said
  - 27 Sep 2017
    5:56 pm
Certainly surprising to me that individual preferences would have been followed if those preferences go against what is safest for the health and well being of the baby.

- - mom112217 said
  - 27 Sep 2017
    5:51 pm
Having the correct sleep practice is very important for every-one concerned.

- - nealsq said
  - 27 Sep 2017
    5:35 pm
I would have also expected safe sleep practices to be observed