St John Ambulance, the nation’s leading first aid charity, is bringing you some simple, but life saving, first aid tips – this week: what to do when a baby is unresponsive and not breathing. 

What to look for 

•    If your baby is not responding to you and not breathing you need to shout for help. Tell a helper to call 999/112. If you are alone, do CPR for 1 minute before calling 999/112. 

What you need to do: 

•    Place the baby on their back on a firm surface at about waist height in front of you, or on the floor. Open their airway by gently tilting their head back and lifting the chin. Pick out anything obvious from their mouth. 
•    Rescue breaths – take a breath. Make a seal with your mouth over their mouth and nose and blow gently into their mouth and nose for one second to make their chest rise. Remove your mouth and let their chest fall. Repeat this and give a total of 5 rescue breaths. 
•    Chest compressions – place 2 fingers, of your lower hand, onto the middle of the baby’s chest and press down by at least one third of its depth. Release the pressure and repeat at a rate of 100-120 times per minute. After 30 compressions, give two rescue breaths. 
•    Continue given 30 compressions followed by 2 rescue breaths. If you are on your own, stop after one minute of CPR and call 999/112 for emergency help if it has not already been done. 
•    Continue CPR, 30:2, until emergency help arrives and takes over. If they start to breathe again, hold them in the recovery position. Keep monitoring their breathing and start CPR again if they stop breathing. 
•    If you are unwilling or unable to perform rescue breaths, give continuous chest compressions. 

For more information go to www.sja.org.uk

Article supplied by Kate Rutsch