First Lady of West Virginia discusses Infant Safe Sleep Month at WVU Medicine Children's

Joanne Jaeger Tomblin, the wife of West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, visited WVU Medicine Children's Sept. 8 as part of six infant safe sleep awareness events being held at hospitals across West Virginia during September. The visits are part of the Our Babies: Safe and Sound “Say YES to Safe Sleep” campaign.

Mrs. Tomblin and other officials cited statistics about infant death in West Virginia and talked about plans to raise awareness and reverse the trend. She read and presented WVU Medicine with a proclamation.

In honor of this campaign, Gov. Tomblin proclaimed September to be Infant Safe Sleep Month in West Virginia – a month that celebrates babies and focuses on making sure parents are aware of infant safe sleep problems and solutions.

Last year, with the help of Our Babies: Safe and Sound, First Lady Tomblin hosted infant safe sleep awareness events at four West Virginia hospitals. With this year’s expanded hospital participation, the “Say YES to Safe Sleep” campaign will now reach 81 percent of West Virginia’s birthing population.

Our Babies: Safe and Sound is a project of TEAM for West Virginia Children that provides parents and other caregivers of infants under the age of one, as well as expectant parents and healthcare professionals, with information and tips on ways to keep babies safe while sleeping and how to keep calm when babies cry. The overall goal of the Our Babies: Safe and Sound “Say YES to Safe Sleep” campaign is to help prevent West Virginia infants from injury and death.