Save A Baby's Life
Coordinator and home branch
Why?
One of the highest causes of infant mortality is accidents, of which choking and drowning are the most common. The parent or caregiver is likely to be the first on the scene of an accident within the home or its surrounds. This 2-hour course aims to give parents and carers of infants an awareness of risks and the confidence to perform infant basic life support in an emergency. The course covers CPR and what to do inthe event of choking and near drowning and stresses the importance of early access to advanced care.
What is SaBL?
Save A Baby's Life is a two-hour attendance course run through the Royal Lifesaving Society (RLSS) that covers basic life support (rescue breathing and CPR), choking and near drowning protocols as applied to infants.
The project involves a group of medical students being trained by an RLSS National Trainer/Assessor (NTA) to deliver this course in the community. Training the students should take no longer than one or two evening sessions, depending on the NTA. RLSS members are already delivering this course across the country, but access to the course varies significantly between areas.
The aim is to provide the training so that all those involved in the care of infants, in a defined area, have the opportunity to attend. The main difference to what is already being done is that the training should take a proactive approach to engage all people involved in caring for infants. This should especially be the case for those in economically deprived areas, where the incidence of childhood accidents is highest.
This can be achieved by coordinating with schools, Sure Start Children’s Centres, creches, nurseries, the local council, the primary care trust, midwives, health visitors and any other local charities or organisations.
