Take a break … step away.
Advice that can save a life is being spread to young parents and infant caregivers: when babies cry and cannot be comforted, a brief respite can save a life.
After a Shaken Baby Syndrome death in the Kingsley area last February, a multi-agency workgroup formed in April determined to make a difference.
Starting with zero funding, the group has put together Public Service Announcements thanks to the Department of Human Services and conducted training for phone help line counselors at Third Level and public health nurses who work with young families.
The workgroup has also received a Love For Children Memorial grant to cover still ads at the local Horizon Cinema while another grant from the Tri-County Coalition for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect funded rattles printed with the Third Level help line number. These rattles, whose other side reads "Shake this, never a baby,” will be given to all moms giving birth at Munson Medical Center during their pre-registration visit.
All the efforts are geared to one mission:
"What will they do when the baby doesn't stop crying?” asks Gary Aschim, a social services program manager with the Grand Traverse/Leelanau Department of Human Services.
Shaken Baby Syndrome workgroup members want to save babies from cripa caregiver, frustrated by incessant crying, grabs the baby and shakes it in a rage. Even a few seconds of shaking can kill or cause permanent damage.
"It causes very significant, very serious injuries,” said Irene Stuart, a Child Protective Services investigator. "A broken leg will heal, a broken brain will not.”
"I investigate child abuse and neglect and I've grown weary of investigating broken babies,” she added sadly.
Meeting monthly, the workgroup pulls in members from an alphabet of agencies: the Grand Traverse County Health Department, Head Start, Early Head Start, the Medical Examiner, the Prosecuting Attorney, the Grand Traverse County Sheriff's Department, Munson's Healthy Futures program, the Department of Human Services and the Women's Resource Center's Doula Teen Parent program.
The workgroup's mission is to get the word out about Shaken Baby Syndrome, including the stressors leading up to it and steps to defuse a volatile situation — namely taking a quick break to calm down.
"It's the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back and someone's broken,” noted Stuart of the mounting tensions that lead to shaking.
Statistics cited at the most recent workgroup meeting, held Monday morning at the Health Department, show that male caregivers cause 90-95 percent of cases. These young dads are left alone with the baby when the mother returns to work, making the most vulnerable time for Shaken Baby Syndrome to occur is the two- to four-month-old window.
Babies will cry, that's one guarantee, sometimes without ceasing for no discernable reason. If a dad or other caregiver does not yet have the comfort strategies in place that the baby's mom developed, he may lash out.
The workgroup believes their outreach will show another way; their concise messages are visceral and to the point.
"To walk away is sometimes hard when you're a real young fella and you're used to dealing with things physically,” said Shelley Burnes, a client advocate with the Doula Teen Parent Program.
Future plans for spreading the message include getting the information into schools through gym, child development or health classes, television PSAs and billboards.
"Think off the beaten path, non-traditional,” encouraged Betsy Hardy, coordinator of Healthy Futures, as meeting attendees brainstormed other ways to share the information.
For more information about the Grand Traverse County Shaken Baby Syndrome workgroup, contact Heide McNichols at 922-2735.