Dad's Corner

Welcome to the Dad's Corner page. We know that dads are playing an ever increasing roll in nurturing and raising children. If you have suggestions or comments about information you would like to see on this page, please contact us.

Click the links below for information on:

NEW-Bed Sharing, SIDS Prevention and Safe Sleeping
NEW-Child Abuse Prevention Tips for Parents
Child Development Online Encyclopedia
Child Health and Safety
Colds - Alternatives for Treating Baby's Cold
Community Resources - 211 Live
Community Resources for Parents
NEW-Depression in Dads
Consumer Product Safety Commission
NEW-Fahter's Health Habits Can Effect Fetal Health
Family Support Groups - Free
Fathers Reading Every Day (FRED) Initiative
Doctors
Lead Alert Network
Lead Alert Children's Jewelry - QuinCrafts
Lead Exposure and Toys
Lead Poisoning - Protect Your Child
Nurturing Fathers - American Dad
Nurturing Fathers - Brand New Dad
Nurturing Fathers - Daddy Movement
Nurturing Fathers - Fathers Forum Online
Nurturing Fathers - Great Dad - Because Dads Don't Always Think Like Moms
Nurturing Fathers - From Father to Daddy
Phone Service Discounts for Low Income Residents
Parenting Information
Parenting Information- American Academy of Pediatrics
New - Parenting Information - Florida Department of Health
Parenting Information - Zero to Three.org
New -Postpartum Depression - A Husband's Perspective
New - Product Recalls
RSV - Respiratory Syncytial Virus - a leading cause of long term pulmonary sequeale in infants
Reel Fathers
New -Safe Haven for Newborns
Safe Sleeping Environments for Babies
Shaken Baby Syndrome
New -Smoking and It's Impact on Infants
STD/STI Information
Terminally Ill Children, Infant Death

 

What makes a safe sleeping environment for your baby?

  • Place your baby on his or her back to sleep for naps and at night.
  • Use sleep clothing, such as a one-piece sleeper, instead of a blanket.
  • Do not let anyone smoke near your baby.
  • Use a firm mattress in a safety-approved crib covered by a fitted sheet.
  • Make sure nothing covers the baby’s head.
  • Do not use billows, blankets, sleepskins, or pillow-like bumpers in your baby’s sleep area.
  • Keep soft objects, stuffed toys, and loose bedding out of your baby ’s sleep area.

For more information on Safe Sleeping:

Safe Sleep for Your Baby: Ten Ways to Reduce the Risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

 

Doctors

Looking for a doctor?

Click here to type in a doctor's name and get information about whether or not they accept Medicaid, their office locations, hospitals where they have privileges, their education and training, academic appointments, specialty certifications and more.

Want to file a complaint against a doctor or unlicensed person acting as a doctor?

Click here to file a complaint. The Department of Health, Division of Medical Quality Assurance is responsible for analysis of complaints and reports involving potential misconduct of a licensee and initiates investigations when appropriate. If the Department determines that your complaint is a possible violation of Florida Law, it will be investigated. A Department investigator may contact you for additional information. Following legal review, the Department will refer the complaint to the appropriate panel of the regulatory board to determine if a violation of the Florida Law has occurred.

Fathers Reading Every Day (FRED) Initiative

New Developed by Texas Cooperative Extension, an educational agency affiliated with the Texas A&M University System, Fathers Reading Every Day (FRED) is a program designed to encourage fathers, grandfathers, and other positive male role models to read to their children on a daily basis. The program aims to increase father involvement in children's literacy development and to improve the quality of father-child relationships.
http://fcs.tamu.edu/families/parenting/fathering/index.php

 Shaken Baby Syndrome

Shaken Baby Syndrome is 100% preventable.

  • Previous studies have suggested that about a half of parents and adolescents are not aware of the dangers of violent infant shaking.
  • Men are most often the perpetrators of SBS.
  • It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere.
  • Shaking a child is child abuse.
  • When a baby is shaken, the head whips back and forth and causes the brain to slam against the skull repeatedly. The sudden impact can prompt bleeding in the brain, spinal cord injuries or damage to the retina. Shaken children suffer a variety of horrible outcomes, including severe brain damage, blindness, paralysis, seizures, fractures or death.
  • Caregivers should be educated on SBS, and parents should discuss ways to prevent it, i.e. offering a phone number so the caregiver can call if he or she becomes frustrated; assuring caregivers that placing a child who persistently cries in a safe place such as a crib, leaving the room, and then checking on the child periodically is acceptable (after the caregiver has exhausted all ways to relieve the child's distress).
  • Everyday handling of a baby, playful acts or minor household accidents do not cause the forces necessary to create SBS injuries. Shaking injuries are not caused by: bouncing a baby on your knee; tossing a baby in the air; jogging or bicycling with a baby; falling off furniture; sudden stops in a car or driving over bumps.
  • Parents in Florida who need help coping with their baby can call 911 or 1-800-FLA LOVE. A brochure about Shaken Baby Syndrome and ways to prevent it is available at the Florida Department of Health.

Product Recalls

2008-Jul - Jardine Cribs Recalled Due to Entrapment and Strangulation Hazard. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Jardine Enterprises, of Taipei, Taiwan, announced a voluntary recall of about 320,000 Jardine Cribs. The wooden crib slats and spindles can break, creating a gap, which can pose an entrapment and strangulation hazard to infants. There have been 42 incidents of crib slats and spindles breaking. Four children became entrapped in the space created by a broken slat or spindle. Two of the children had abrasions and bruising.

The cribs were made in China and Vietnam and sold in the US at KidsWorld, Geoffrey Stores, Toys “R” Us, and Babies “R” Us stores nationwide, and at babiesrus.com, from January 2002 through May 2008. Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled cribs and contact Jardine to receive a full credit toward the purchase of a new crib. For additional information, contact Jardine at (800) 646-4106 or visit the firm’s Web site at www.jardinecribrecall.com. To view the recalled crib model numbers and see the cribs, go to http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08312.html.

2008-Feb - Evenflo recalls Discovery infant car seat models 390, 391, 534, 552 as tests have shown that this car seat could potentially become separated from its base in high impact side collisions

2007-Dec - Over the counter drugs containing Phenylpropanolamine. Over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription cough and cold medications as a decongestant and in OTC weight loss products.

2007-Oct- Bumbo Baby Sitters Recall