Change for our Children

News

Pods to Waikato (Dec 2011)

The first 500 pepi-pods of a 1500 order was sent to Waikato DHB before New Year. This is a very exciting development for the region and a big project for us. May it result in more settled babies, more aware parents, greater spread of safe sleep information within priority networks and fewer infant deaths.

We love our new offices (October 2011)

We are well and truly settled into our Victoria Street Offices and are loving the space after the cramped months at Webb St following the earthquake. There is room for the pepi-pod 'stuff' with boxes of sheets and blankets piled to the ceiling and we are in a buzzing part of the Christchurch recovery, although that might be an illusion as we a nestled behind and excellent cafe!.

Christchurch Earthquake Update Page:
We are fully operational. This page is where we will keep you informed and where you can find out where we are and how to contact us in the aftermath of the earthquake. Please keep using our services. Thank you.

Pepi-pods on breakfast TV
An attractive TV presenter promoting health education messages on national breakfast TV - that is perfect! Thank you Charlette Baliss who did a wonderfully balanced job of promoting safe sleep and smokefree families as the main players in protecting babies from accidental suffocation. To see Charlotte, watch this clip starting 3.55 minutes in on Breakfast: Regional Round-up.

Pepi-pod helpers
Are you looking for how to help with the Pepi-Pod innovation? If you would love to make covers or sleep sets, or sponsor a pod, click here for more information.

Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) decision on safe sleep imagery for babies (Feb 2011)
The ASA recently ruled against a TV ad showing a baby sleeping on a sheepskin, stating that the advertisement was in breach of the ASA Code of Ethics for social responsibility. This decision is strong support for the Safe Sleep campaign and sends a clear warning to the media community at large to be vigilant about policies and checking systems when it come to use of images of sleeping babies. Click the link to view the ASA Decision and our Media Release.

International presentations (Oct 2010) 
Our teams presented at two international conferences during 7-10 October, 2010:   the joint conference of the International Stillbirth Association (ISA) and International Society for the Study and Prevention of Infant Death (ISPID) the Asia Pacific Conference on Tobacco or Health (APACT). See presentations here. 

New resource!  - 'It matters where you grow' 
We are delighted to launch here for free download, this interactive presentation 'It Matters Where You Grow'  This is  smokefree pregnancy education for students, health professionals, communities and families. There are several levels of participation: the detail of the slides is more suited to students and health professionals and the voice over extends participation to others. 

Help from TV (Mar 2010) 
OnTuesday 23 March, the Safe Sleep programme got some help from TV3. The channel ran a piece on their Sunrise breakfast show, interviewing Stephanie Cowan about the warning on baby slings recently issued by US officials following the deaths of 14 babies in slings. Exposure such as this is like gold to a 1.5 FTE service that is run on a shoe string budget. Achieving the kind of change we are chasing requires extensive reach across the many social systems that divide people. The interview was an opportunity to explain a baby's vulnerability when placed in unsafe positions and emphasise the principles of safe sleep for babies. The video clip is available here. 

Baby Essentials Online has passed 1000! (Mar 2010)
Our goal was 1000 people to the online education in its first 4 months and this happened on Friday 26 March 2010. We trust the information is as supportive for most as this comment from a recent user suggests : 

"I have just completed the Baby Essentials Online programme and am in awe of the way you pitch things. I particularly liked the slide that addressed the differences in opinion in bed sharing, how the messages came from the babies   themselves and the focus on using influence."