Infant
Mortality and Pregnancy Loss
Resources for Families
Here you will find links to care, services, and support and websites for expectant and new parents about ways to help babies survive and thrive, pregnancy loss, losing a baby, and grief.
- Compassionate
Friends: Grief Support After the Death of a Child.
Support via online
support groups and local
chapters to bereaved parents, grandparents, and siblings
who have experienced pregnancy loss or the death of a
child.
- First
Candle. A nationwide, 24-hour, toll-free
hotline for expectant and new parents on ways to help
their babies survive and thrive, for parents who have
experienced a pregnancy loss or the death of a baby,
and for professionals working with families. Telephone:
(800) 221-7437.
- Maternal
and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) Hotline.
A hotline number to help pregnant women and mothers with
newborns identify free or low-cost services for themselves
and their babies. Telephone: (800) 311-2229 (311-BABY);
(800) 504-7081 (Spanish).
- National Sudden
and Unexpected Infant/Child Death and Pregnancy Loss
Resource Center. Resources for expectant
and new parents on ways to help babies survive and thrive,
pregnancy loss, the sudden and unexpected death of a
baby, and grief. Telephone: (866) 866-7437 (Monday-Friday
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time). E-mail: info@sidscenter.org.
- Share
Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support, Inc: Find a Support
Group. Contact information for support groups in most states for grieving families.
- First
Candle: New and Expectant Parents. Tips about having a healthy baby, breastfeeding,
baby care, and ways to reduce the risk of sudden infant
death syndrome (SIDS). Use Kicks
Count! materials in English and Spanish to help you monitor your baby's movement during
pregnancy and do something if you are worried. Call the hotline to learn about
ways to help your baby
survive and thrive.
- March
of Dimes (MOD): Pregnancy and Newborn Health Education
Center. Information in English and Spanish
about preconception and prenatal care, pregnancy complications,
labor and delivery, breastfeeding, and newborn care.
Topics include safety for babies and risk factors for
SIDS. Resources include a blog, an online question-and-answer
service in English and Spanish, and video and audio clips.
- National Healthy
Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB).
Fact sheets, published interviews with experts, and information
in a question-and-answer format about preconception planning,
prenatal care, and baby care. Use HMHB's service:
Text4baby. Free weekly messages by cell phone in English and Spanish to help you through pregnancy and your baby's first year.
- Safe
Kids USA: Safety Basics for Babies. Information
about infant safety during sleep; while feeding, bathing,
or playing; and when riding in the car.
- Also see the MCH Library's family
resource brief, Preconception
and Pregnancy, and the resource brief, Breastfeeding.
- Learn
more about making a safe sleep space for your baby.
- March
of Dimes (MOD): Pregnancy and Newborn Loss.
Information about ectopic and molar pregnancy, miscarriage,
neonatal death, and stillbirth.
- MedlinePlus. Links to information in
English and Spanish about miscarriage and stillbirth.
- National
Sudden and Unexpected Infant/Child Death and Pregnancy
Loss Resource Center: Pregnancy Loss, Miscarriage, Stillbirth.
Links to websites with information about pregnancy loss,
miscarriage, and stillbirth and about coping with your
loss.
- CJ Foundation
for SIDS. Information and materials about
SIDS and steps to reduce the risk for SIDS.
- MedlinePlus:
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Links to information
in English and Spanish about SIDS.
- National
Sudden and Unexpected Infant/Child Death and Pregnancy
Loss Resource Center: For Families. A guide
to information in English and Spanish about SIDS and
its characteristics, diagnosis, risk factors, research,
and prevention initiatives. Links to publications and
websites for more information about SIDS.
- Compassionate
Friends: Grief Support After the Death of a Child.
Brochures for parents, grandparents, and siblings who
have experienced pregnancy loss and the death of a child.
Offers support via online
support groups and local chapters.
- First
Candle: Grieving Families. Articles, brochures,
and a hotline for families
who have experienced the death of a baby. Some brochures
are available in Spanish.
- Hospice: For
Patients and Families Facing Life-Threatening Illness.
Articles about coping with death, including
articles to help surviving children.
- March
of Dimes (MOD): Bereavement Materials. Articles
for families who have experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth,
or death of a baby. Resources explain grief, discuss
how to deal with your feelings and ask for help, and
suggest ways to remember your baby.
- National
Sudden and Unexpected Infant/Child Death and Pregnancy
Loss Resource Center: Bereavement Support.
A guide to resources for parents, families, caregivers,
and others touched by a baby's death. Also presents a podcast of
three parents who discuss their experiences of loss and
offer advice to other parents who have lost a child.
- Share
Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support, Inc.
Brochures in English
and Spanish for grieving families experiencing
pregnancy loss or the death of a baby, contact
information for local support groups, and an electronic
newsletter. Articles, training, and conferences for those
caring for bereaved families.
Learn more about infant mortality and pregnancy loss and factors that contribute to the death of a baby: birth defects, injuries, low birthweight and prematurity, preconception and pregnancy, and sleep environment.
Need more information? Use the collection of resources that library staff have put together for you and your family.
Infant Mortality and Pregnancy Loss: Family Resource Brief.
(November 2010). (Updated: September 2011).
Author: Susan Brune Lorenzo, M.L.S., MCH Library.
Contributors: Jeanne Anastasi, M.A., Beth DeFrancis, M.L.S., and Tracy Lopez,
M.S.L.S., National Sudden and Unexpected Infant/Child Death & Pregnancy Loss Resource Center.
Reviewers: Suzanne Bronheim, Ph. D., National Center for Cultural Competence; Stacey D. Cunningham, M.S.W., M.P.H., National Healthy Start Association; Hanan Kallash, R.N., M.S., First Candle; Olivia K. Pickett, M.A., M.L.S., MCH Library.
Editor: Ruth Barzel, M.A., MCH Library.
