OSCEOLA COUNTY— Some Northern Michigan paramedics getting special certification that they say will help reduce the number of unexpected infant deaths in the area.
Osceola County EMS is now a safe sleep certified agency.
The certification will allow them to provide safe sleep resources to people in Osceola and surrounding counties.
Kyle Pedeszwik is the infant safe sleep coordinator for Osceola County EMS. He’s also a paramedic himself.
He said his past experiences are motivation for him to try to reduce sudden unexpected infant deaths.
“Preventable infant deaths have always been especially tragic to me. They are hard for families. They are hard for the responders and any sort of resources that we can provide to help prevent these deaths is worth doing,” said Pedeszwik.
He said the most recent data for Michigan from 2023 says that 6.1 out of 1,000 births experienced a sudden unexpected death.
He said in Osceola County and the surrounding areas-through his work as a paramedic there was between 4 and 6 cases of unexpected infant deaths last year.
He said financial costs for things like cribs,pack n plays, and infant sleepwear are financial barriers that have some parents looking for alternatives that are not safe.
“We’ll see infants sleeping in bed with parents, which is not safe. Just due to the soft mattresses, the loose blankets. And we’ll also see things like, babies sleeping on couches or being placed on cushions, on chairs, to nap,” said Pedeszwik.
He said the program is funded through the Department of Health and Human Services.
“We’re hoping to host, you know, classes for community members to teach them about infant safe sleep practices, perform demonstrations, encourage them to get education, and provide education for infant and child CPR in the home,” said Pedeszwik.
Osceola County paramedic Katelynn Swanson shares tips to keep infants safe
“The most important tips would be to avoid large bedding, avoid stuffed animals and bumper pads, and laying your baby flat on their back on a firm surface in their crib,” said Swanson.
Swanson said safe sleep education is still needed, she said advice given from generation to generation isn’t always right.
“Everybody kind of listens to their grandparents, listens to their parents, calls them at night for information, and they’re not necessarily giving you the right advice. They don’t have any bad intent with that at all. But it’s still not the proper way to do things,” said Swanson.