How to Administer CPR to Babies

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Parents would do anything to keep their babies safe and sound.

choking
CPR for a child

Those first few months are very critical since they’re so fragile and can’t really cry out for help. This is why it’s a must for parents to know basic first aid so they can be prepared for any emergencies involving their offspring. In an ideal world, parents would take up First Aid and CPR courses to ensure that they’re always prepared, especially since emergencies can strike anytime and anywhere. Critical situations like your baby not breathing calls for a fast response.

Before you administer CPR to your baby, ensure your own safety first. Parents might not be aware that their child is infected with a contagious disease. To avoid exposure, parents should take precautions and wear protective gear like gloves or masks if they’re available. Making sure that you’re protected will guarantee that you’ll be around to protect and take care of your children.

Steps to Administering CPR to Babies

  • Try to wake the baby up. Studies have shown that really small babies often respond when their soles are rubbed or tapped. Babies that are older than 2 months also respond well to taps on their chest or shoulders. Call the babies name out loud. The key is to be firm enough to get a response but gentle enough not to hurt the baby.
  • Begin chest compressions. Put two of your fingers on your baby’s breastbone, approximately between the baby’s nipples. Push straight down about 1 ½” deep. Let the chest inflate all the way back up. Do compressions for 30 times, two times per second.

The next step depends on whether or not you’ve taken CPR courses and knows how to give rescue breaths. If yes, proceed to the next step. Otherwise, go to the last step.

  • Give rescue breaths. This step should be done only if you have had training. Once you’ve done 30 chest compressions, cover your baby’s mouth and nose with your own mouth and gently blow. Push air into your baby until you see his or her chest rising, let the air escape and give one more rescue breath.

Adjust your baby’s head if you see that the chest didn’t rise up when you gave rescue breaths. Skip this step and return to chest compressions if the rescue breaths fail again. You can try this again after 30 more chest compressions.

  • Continue with administering CPR and call 911. Have someone call 911 as soon as possible. However, do CPR for 2 minutes before calling 911 if you’re alone. If someone appears while you’re doing CPR, make that person call 911 and remind them to state the reason why they’re calling. This is to ensure that the dispatcher knows exactly what the emergency is and can even give instructions on what you should do.

Remember that you need to call 911 any time that CPR has to be done, even if the victim has regained consciousness.

It’s very easy to forget important things in emergency situations like a choking baby or one that’s not breathing. But as a parent, you should always strive to keep a level head. Consider taking CPR courses. It’s an important skill to learn, not just because it will save your family but it will also put you in the position to help anyone.

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