Safe Sleep Instructor Certification
The KIDS Network Safe Sleep Instructor (SSI) Certification was created in 2015 to address the high rate of infant mortality. With sleep-related deaths being the leading cause of infant death for infants 1 month to 1 year, our long-term goal is to reduce infant mortality by increasing infant safe sleep.
The SSI project aims to utilize instructors to their maximum potential, and to build collective impact to reduce sleep-related infant deaths. The overall objective is to build capacity to roll out safe sleep promotion programs developed for specific venues, including the community, hospitals and outpatient maternal and infant clinics. Our central hypothesis is that culturally sensitive education, coupled with easy to implement strategies, can build on the communities’ current work to significantly increase the number of parents/caregivers using safe sleep practices.
This train-the-trainer model certifies Safe Sleep Instructors to educate their communities about the American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep recommendations and created a vehicle for delivery of the KIDS Network Safe Sleep Community Baby Shower, Safe Sleep Star Outpatient Clinic Certification and the Cribs for Kids Hospital Certification. This in turn, will help facilitate a safe sleep culture to reduce the number of sleep-related deaths.
The KIDS Network certifies Safe Sleep Instructors (SSI) through their National SSI Certification program. The KIDS Network manages and is responsible for the curriculum which is based on the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Safe Kids guidance and recommendations. The SSI certification is endorsed by the Association of Maternal Child Health Programs (AMCHP) and supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) Bureau of Family Health and Health Promotion and Safe Kids Kansas.
The KIDS Network Safe Sleep Instructor (SSI) Certification was created in 2015 to address the high rate of infant mortality. With sleep-related deaths being the leading cause of infant death for infants 1 month to 1 year, our long-term goal is to reduce infant mortality by increasing infant safe sleep.
The SSI project aims to utilize instructors to their maximum potential, and to build collective impact to reduce sleep-related infant deaths. The overall objective is to build capacity to roll out safe sleep promotion programs developed for specific venues, including the community, hospitals and outpatient maternal and infant clinics. Our central hypothesis is that culturally sensitive education, coupled with easy to implement strategies, can build on the communities’ current work to significantly increase the number of parents/caregivers using safe sleep practices.
This train-the-trainer model certifies Safe Sleep Instructors to educate their communities about the American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep recommendations and created a vehicle for delivery of the KIDS Network Safe Sleep Community Baby Shower, Safe Sleep Star Outpatient Clinic Certification and the Cribs for Kids Hospital Certification. This in turn, will help facilitate a safe sleep culture to reduce the number of sleep-related deaths.
The KIDS Network certifies Safe Sleep Instructors (SSI) through their National SSI Certification program. The KIDS Network manages and is responsible for the curriculum which is based on the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Safe Kids guidance and recommendations. The SSI certification is endorsed by the Association of Maternal Child Health Programs (AMCHP) and supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) Bureau of Family Health and Health Promotion and Safe Kids Kansas.
The KIDS Network strategy to reduce sleep-related deaths is to provide consistent safe sleep messages along a continuum of care. We strive to educate new and expectant parents, caregivers, grandparents, and anyone caring for an infant in the first year of the infant’s life. Consistent messaging must be provided in the community, clinics, hospitals, birthing centers and child care facilities.
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Safe Sleep Instructor Certification includes:
SSI Trainings: October 23-24, 2025 |
Over 300 KIDS Network Safe Sleep Instructors (SSIs) have been certified across the states since 2015. The SSIs educate parents/caregivers, child care providers, health care providers, and other community members about safe sleep practices. Instructors serve as the voice for safe sleep by promoting it through standardized training and community outreach. They work in hospitals, doctors’ offices, public health, nonprofit organizations, businesses, schools and colleges. If you are interested in becoming a Safe Sleep Instructor, please contact Maria Torres at [email protected].
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Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers are an interactive event that invites new and expectant parents, their support people, and community service providers to get together for an educational “baby shower.” In 2011 The Wichita Black Nurses Association and the KIDS Network began Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers to focus on:
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The KIDS Network, awards recognition to outpatient provider clinics that demonstrate a commitment to reducing sleep-related infant deaths by promoting safe sleep practices and risk-reduction strategies. By earning a Safe Sleep Star, a clinic demonstrates its leadership and commitment to eliminating sleep-related deaths, the leading cause of infant death for infants one month to one year of age. For more information, please contact the KIDS Network.
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The Cribs for Kids® National Infant Safe Sleep Hospital Certification program awards recognition to hospitals that demonstrate a commitment to reducing infant Sleep-Related Deaths by promoting best safe sleep practices and by educating on infant sleep safety. Certified Safe Sleep Instructors work with Kansas hospitals to complete the program. For more information, please contact your area Safe Sleep Instructor or the KIDS Network.
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This project is supported in part by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s Bureau of Family Health Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant #B04MC30614 funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.