Goal for drastic infant-death drop

"Although evidence shows it's safest for a baby to sleep in a bassinet or cot, we know that in some families this doesn't happen." Health Minister Jonathan Coleman

By reducing smoking rates and bed-sharing with newborn babies, the Government says it can drastically reduce the number of sudden infant deaths in less than a decade.

Health Minister Jonathan Coleman has announced a new goal to reduce the number of babies who die each year because of Sudden Unexpected Death in Infancy (SUDI), by 86 per cent within eight years.

By reducing the overall rate of SUDI by 86 per cent and 94 per cent for Maori by 2025, the number of SUDI deaths would be reduced from 44 to six.

The SUDI rate is about 0.7 in every 1000 babies born, and 1.59 for every 1000 Maori babies born. The goal was to get that rate down to 0.1 in every 1000 births by 2025.

He made the announcement at the annual conference of the Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee (PMMRC).

It comes a month after the Green Party announced a policy to give parents a baby pod welcome pack for all newborns, that included a sleeping pod, bedding and essential items.

Late last year, the minister also intervened when Health Ministry officials sought to scrap funding for the provision of sleeping pods in some district health board areas.

‘‘We know that babies are at the greatest risk of SUDI in their first 10 months and that rates are higher for Maori babies,’’ said Coleman.

‘‘The National SUDI Prevention Programme will target two of the biggest preventable risk for SUDI, which are being exposed to tobacco smoke during pregnancy and having the baby sharing a bed.

‘‘To support this new approach we’re investing an extra $2 million into the programme, taking its annual budget to $5m.’’

Coleman said the prevention programme would make better use of innovative new approaches to reduce smoking, including smoking cessation incentive programmes, which had proven effective in trials.

While the two were not linked, smoking rates were likely to be higher in families that also practised co-sleeping.

The PMMRC released it’s annual report yesterday and it showed while perinatal the death rate in 2015 was the lowest since reporting began in 2005, the rate had not changed significantly in New Zealand since 2007.

Counties Manukau DHB had registered the highest perinatal death rate; it was the largest DHB but also serviced a particularly high-needs population.

But some health data, including smoking data, had gaps at collection, which the PMMRC said the Ministry of Health needed to address as a matter of urgency.

‘‘Although evidence shows it’s safest for a baby to sleep in a bassinet or cot, we know that in some families this doesn’t happen. That’s why we’re supporting these families to have their baby sharing a bed as safely as possible,’’ said Coleman.

From September, the Government would be providing safe sleep devices - known as Pepi Pods or Wahakura - to families identified as needing them.

‘‘As some DHBs already have a similar scheme in place, the new programme will now be nationally co-ordinated. We expect every family who needs this form of assistance will be identified and supported to keep their baby safe during sleep,’’ he said.

‘‘More needs to be done to address our SUDI rate, and by adopting this evidence-based approach it’s hoped real and meaningful change can be achieved.’’