title: Bed-sharing influences, attitudes, and practices: implications for promoting safe infant sleep.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the infant bed-sharing practices of mothers from the birth of the infant to three months of age. The study was a longitudinal descriptive design using a self-report instrument immediately after delivery with follow-up phone interviews at one and three months after discharge. While no mothers intended to bed-share with their infants immediately after delivery, 60 percent reported bed-sharing at some time at one month after discharge and 9 percent at three months. Only 19 percent of mothers reported receiving information about infant sleeping practices from their physician and 22 percent from their nurse. One month post discharge was identified as a high-risk period for infant bed-sharing. Interventions aimed at teaching new mothers about responding to infant cues and ways to manage a fussy infant may minimize the rate of bed-sharing.
authors.affiliation: Widener University, School of Nursing, Chester, PA 19013, USA. amkrouse@widener.edu
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Krouse
authors.forename: Joanne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Craig
authors.forename: Ursula
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.forename: Zannia
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Matthews
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kolski
authors.forename: Kay
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Isola
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001513:Beds; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D010414:Pennsylvania; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012449:Safety; D012890:Sleep; D013398:Sudden Infant Death / Q000517:prevention & control; D055815:Young Adult