Salem Hospital Receives Grant form the Children’s Trust Fund of Oregon Foundation

July 15, 2009

“You knew your baby would cry. But, did you know how frustrating that crying could be when you have tried everything to comfort your baby, and she just keeps crying? Dealing with a crying baby can be very hard, and parents often don't realize just how frustrating it is until they are in a stressful situation. No one thinks they will shake their infant, but research shows crying as the number one trigger leading caregivers to violently shake and injure babies.”  from the National Center onShaken Baby Syndrome.

Salem Hospital has received a grant for child abuse prevention from the Children’s Trust Fund of Oregon Foundation (CTFO).  The mission of the Children’s Trust Fund of Oregon is to foster healthy child development and functioning by ending the harm of child abuse and neglect to Oregon's children. Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) is recognized as the most common cause of mortality and accounts for the most long-term disability in infants and young children due to physical child abuse. 

Grant funds of $26,000 will be used over the next two years to support an evidence-based shaken baby syndrome (SBS) prevention program called The Period of PURPLE Crying ®.  This program was developed by the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome from over 25 years of research on normal infant crying conducted by Ronald G. Barr, MDCM, and other scientists worldwide.

The Period of PURPLE Crying ® educational materials prepare parents to expect infant crying, especially between two and eights months of age.  It offers appropriate responses than can be used with crying infants and explains the connection between crying, frustration and shaking responses.  The 10 minute DVD and 11 page color booklet are available in multiple languages and use positive messages that have been tested with large parent groups and have been well received by parents as well as healthcare professionals.

Salem Hospital will be the second hospital in the state of Oregon to launch a large scale, hospital-based SBS prevention program using The Period of PURPLE Crying ® materials.   A similar initiative was funded by CTFO in 2005 for the Legacy Hospital System.