S-1690.1                   _______________________________________________

                                                     SENATE BILL 5841

                              _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              53rd Legislature                             1993 Regular Session

By Senators Moyer, Prentice, Talmadge, Quigley, Prince, Hochstatter, McAuliffe, Erwin, West, Sheldon and Winsley

Read first time 02/17/93.  Referred to Committee on Health & Human Services.

Requiring an outreach campaign on shaken baby syndrome.

          AN ACT Relating to shaken baby syndrome; adding a new section to chapter 43.121 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  The legislature finds that shaken baby syndrome is a medically serious, sometimes fatal, usually unintentional matter affecting newborns and very young children.

          Vigorous shaking of an infant can result in bleeding inside the head, causing irreversible brain damage, blindness, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, spinal cord injury, seizures, learning disabilities, or death.  Many healthy, intelligent infants suffer from shaken baby syndrome because their caregivers were unaware of the dangers.  The damage is preventable through education and awareness.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 43.121 RCW to read as follows:

          The council shall conduct a proactive, public information and communication outreach campaign regarding the dangers of shaking infants and young children, and the causes and prevention of shaken baby syndrome.

          The public information campaign shall include production and distribution of a readily understandable brochure regarding shaken baby syndrome, explaining its medical effects upon infants and emphasizing preventive measures.

          The brochure shall be distributed free of charge to the parents or guardians of each newborn, upon discharge from a hospital or other health facility.  In the event of home birth attended by a licensed midwife, the midwife shall be responsible for presenting the brochure to the parents of the newborn.

          The public information campaign may, within available funds, also include communication by electronic media, telephone hot-lines, and existing parenting education events funded by the council.

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