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Too many infants die in Marion County. In 2023, the infant mortality rate in Marion County surpassed the rates of both Indiana, and the United States.

During the first 12 months of life, infants are most at risk of mortality due to having low birth weight or serious health problems. But, according to the Indiana Department of Health, approximately 18 percent of 524 infant deaths in Indiana during 2023 occurred due to Sudden Unexpected Infant Deaths (SUIDs). SUIDs typically occur in sleeping environments, and many of those deaths are preventable.

Teri Conard, the Fetal Infant Mortality (FIMR) Program Coordinator in MCPHD’s Maternal and Child Health Department, said the department is increasing its outreach efforts to new parents as a way to prevent infant suffocation.

“Sharing safe sleep education that brings about behavioral change is so needed,” Conard said. “We want to bring attention to this issue in order to help reduce the infant mortality rate in Marion County.”

MCPHD’s Indianapolis Healthy Start program offers education, referral and support services to pregnant women and their families in order to improve infant survival rates in Marion County.

Imelda Moglia-Hawkins, a Bilingual Health Educator with the program, teaches around eight classes each month and provides one-on-one instruction regarding safe-sleep methods and car-seat safety both in English and in Spanish.

When she talks with parents, she stresses the importance of not having babies sleep beside them in bed – a contributing factor in some infant deaths. “I’m not above climbing onto a table with a doll and demonstrating what can happen when an adult rolls over on a baby,” she said.

Other topics include installing and properly securing car seats. Moglia-Hawkins has parents practice with a car seat in the office, and then helps them secure their car seat in their vehicles.

Car seats should be rear-facing until the baby is two years old, she said. And, she is wary of using second-hand car seats – car seats bought at a rummage sale might be cheaper, but could also be damaged.

“A lot of the time, we don’t know that we are putting babies at risk,” she said. “Just by making a few changes, we can keep babies much safer.”

For more information about Indianapolis Healthy Start, call (317) 221-2317 or (317) 221- 2342.