Bed for Every Child

CPMC started providing a bed for every child after CPS Caseworkers made us aware of the terrible danger of suffocation that many infants incur while sleeping in beds with their parents or older siblings. CPMC took action by stocking small portable beds (Pack-N-Plays) and inflatable air mattresses (with sheets and air pumps) to be given to families to avoid co-sleeping. In recent years, improved grants made it possible for CPMC to expand its efforts to assist CPS in discouraging co-sleeping by providing a bed for every child in need. This includes: toddler beds, twin beds and bunk beds. Since expanding this effort in late 2015, beds have been provided for 500 children in Montgomery County. Each year we also provide an average of about 75 pack-n-plays for use as beds until old enough for a twin bed.

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Recent articles about co-sleeping contain the following statements:

• "The number of babies dying from accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed skyrocketed 184% from 1999 to 2015,” according to new statistics released by The American Academy of Pediatrics.

• "About 3,500 infants die every year in the U.S. from sleep-related deaths."

• "In Texas the Child Protective Services investigates an average of 170 cases a year involving children who die while sharing a bed with an adult or older child.”

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