Baby Boxes

Will you help us save a baby’s life?

North Philadelphia has one of the highest infant mortality rates in the United States with many babies born into poverty and to young mothers who do not have adequate resources to care for a newborn.

With your support, Temple University Hospital (TUH) can provide a baby box, along with prenatal and postpartum resources and programs, to all expectant mothers of the 3,000 babies born at Temple annually to reduce the occurrence of sudden unexpected infant death (SUID).

Boxes include a mattress with a fitted sheet, clothes, blankets, a thermometer, diapers, a nasal aspirator, baby wash, a smoke detector, a nightlight, baby books (in both English and Spanish), a Temple branded onesie, and a baby reference mobile application which advises parents on most newborn and childhood issues.

► Give a baby a jump start to a safe and healthy life. Make your gift today.

Why baby boxes?

In the 1930s, Finland was a very poor country with a high infant mortality rate. In fact, 65 out of every 1,000 babies died. For the past 75 years, every expectant mother has been provided with a starter kit, drastically reducing the infant mortality rate to 3 per 1,000 today – what an impact!

The SAFE-T Program

The baby box distribution is part of the Sleep Awareness Family Education at Temple (SAFE-T) Program, which seeks to use baby boxes and education to curb high risk behaviors associated with SUID. The program is led by Megan Heere, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University (LKSOM), and Medical Director of the Well Baby Nursery at TUH and Jennifer Rodriguez, BSN, RN, Director of Nursing Services at TUH.

On May 3, 2016, the hospital began providing baby boxes to new mothers.  Distribution will continue as long as funding is available to support the program.

Because this is such an important initiative, the program has been covered by several news outlets, including ABC News, FOX News, 6abc Action News, CBS 3 Eyewitness News and Good Day Philadelphia.

How you can help

The Temple community has rallied behind this program. In addition to initial support from Kellogg and Kohl’s, more than 300 individual donors have made gifts to help us buy and fill baby boxes.

While the launch was a great success, there is so much more to do. More than 3,000 babies are born at Temple every year, and we need your help to make sure that every one of them leaves with a baby box and the items they need to get a great start at life. Gifts – no matter the size – help power this program, and helps change and even save a life. 

Suggested gift amounts:

• $10 Temple branded baby t-shirt
• $25 Thermometer, Pampers Pop-Up Package, Nasal Aspirator, Baby Wash, a smoke detector
• $50 Baby box with mattress and fitted sheet
• $75 Fleece and cotton wearable blankets, mittens, nightlight, baby book (available in English and Spanish), Temple branded baby t-shirt, and a baby reference mobile application, which advises parents when to call a physician, go to urgent care or the hospital for most newborn and childhood issues.
• $100 All contents inside the box
• $150 A complete starter kit

► Give a baby a jump start to a safe and healthy life. Make your gift today.

For questions, please contact:

Victoria Vicente
Associate Director, Annual Campaigns
215-707-2774
[click-for-email]