Magen David Adom’s Instruction Department conducts babies’ resuscitation courses all across the country, and you can contact it directly at:
Instruction Department: Tel. +972-3-6390396
National Center: Tel. 1700-500-430, Fax. +972-3-6870494
A baby monitor does not prevent SIDS. The commercial monitors are not recommended because they are ineffective in cases of obstructive sleep apneas, they are unreliable and don’t know what causes it, nor can we identify babies at risk. However, may even cause unnecessary anxiety. If you are ordered by a doctor to monitor the baby, it is recommended to use a medical monitor.
It is important to be able to tell if the baby is in distress or not. If he is, you should start resuscitation and simultaneously call the emergency services. We recommend all parents to undergo a babies’ resuscitation course.
The baby should be accustomed to sleeping on his back from the moment it arrives home from the maternity
hospital. The emphasis is on placing the baby on his back to sleep. When awake it is recommended to give the baby enough tummy time under adult supervision.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that even when the baby already rolls over from the back to the
stomach, he should still be placed to sleep on his back, however, he should be allowed to sleep in the position he later chooses for himself.
It is very rare that SIDS happens twice in the same family. The level or risk of the next baby in a family that has already lost a baby is no different than the risk of any other healthy baby. In cases of repeated deaths in the same family there should be further investigation in order to find if there is any defect which has not yet been detected (such as an hereditary metabolic defect).
The European Committee for the Prevention of SIDS recommends that infants be placed to sleep in the parents’
room, however not in the same bad, due to the risk of an adult pressuring the baby or lying on him when asleep.
