SIDS and Kids Australia

The SIDS and Kids Australia is a national, non-profit organization dedicated to providing services to parents and other family members of infants who have died suddenly and unexpectedly from 20 weeks gestation to two years of age, regardless of cause. The organization was initially founded to support infant deaths from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). SIDS is the sudden, unexpected death of an apparently healthy infant that is not explained by previous patient history or by thorough postmortem studies. SIDS and Kids, which has a national office and nine state/territory SIDS branches, provides a 24-hour crisis outreach service to the immediate and extended families of children who have died suddenly and unexpectedly. In addition, SIDS and Kids offers ongoing support to family members, provides current information about SIDS to the public, and works to promote a greater awareness of SIDS and other infant mortality issues and their social impact. SIDS and Kids is also committed to stimulating and funding research that may help to isolate the causes of SIDS, predict at-risk populations, and develop preventive programs; providing a central bank of information to help researchers and health professionals; and disseminating information concerning SIDS research. SIDS and Kids’ has a range of educational resources and a major health promotion campaign entitled “Safe Sleeping”. The council also has a web site that discusses the organisation’s mission, goals, and services; provides information on its state/territory offices; and offers fact sheets on SIDS.