Assessing knowledge of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome among African American women in two Mississippi communities.

Purpose: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the third leading cause of Mississippi infant mortality with nonwhite infants dying of SIDS at two to three times the rate of white infants. The purpose of this study was to assess the level of SIDS related knowledge among African American women in two geographical areas of Mississippi and gain insight on improving methods for SIDS education and outreach.

Design: An African American faculty was contracted to conduct six focus groups among African American women (n = 57) in two geographical areas of the state.

Findings: Themes were common among participants from both the metropolitan and rural Delta communities. Participants in both geographical areas were familiar with [or at least had previously heard] the term SIDS. Unfortunately, there was inconsistency among participants as to the source of information. Given the inconsistencies, it is not surprising that overall knowledge related to SIDS was incomplete and in some cases inaccurate.

Discussion/conclusion: Some information regarding SIDS is available in the various communities. Unfortunately, the information is not fully understood and is not consistently distributed resulting in a lack of knowledge among these women and thus, a continued risk for high rates of SIDS events in Mississippi.