RESUSCITATION FOR BABIES

Needed for the baby who has stopped breathing e.g. after choking, drowning, a major fall etc

• If for any reason a baby stops breathing, you need to take immediate action as you arrange for the baby to go to a health facility.
• Always call for help.
• Check if the baby’s Airway (throat area) has something blocking it. If any object is found, remove it.
• Check the Breathing again. If the baby is still not breathing, commence CPR.
• Put your mouth over the baby’s mouth, pinch the nose shut and give 5 Rescue breaths (make sure the chest rises with each breath).
• You should then put your thumbs over the baby’s breast bone (in the middle of the chest) and give 30 Chest Compressions             
• Alternate 30 chest compressions with 2 Effective Rescue Breaths
• Continue with CPR till either the Baby starts to breath or you arrive at a health facility or until you are too exhausted to continue.

CHOKING IN BABIES
Danger signs of true choking

• Difficulty in breathing
• Inability to cry or make any sound
• Weak, ineffective cough
• Noisy breathing
• Lips may look darker than usual
• Loss of consciousness if blockage is not cleared

BACK BLOWS

• Sit on a chair
• Lay the infant face down, along your forearm. Use your thigh or lap for support.
• Hold the infant’s chest in your hand and jaw with your fingers.
• Point the infant’s head downward, lower than the body.
• Give up to 5 quick, forceful blows between the infant’s shoulder blades using the heel of your free hand.
• Check to see if object is visible, if so, use your small finger to remove it.
• Do not put your finger into the baby’s throat if you cannot see the choking object. You could end up lodging it deeper into the child’s throat and even totally blocking her airway.

CHEST THRUST
If the child is still choking:

• Turn the infant face up. Use your thigh or lap for support. Support the head.
• Place 2 fingers on the middle of his breastbone just below the nipples.
• Give up to 5 quick thrusts down.
• Check to see if object is visible, if so use your small finger to remove it.

Continue this series of 5 back blows and 5 chest thrusts until the object is dislodged.
If object is dislodged and the baby is not breathing, start mouth to mouth rescucitation and rush to the nearest health facility. Make sure that the baby’s chest moves up and down with each breath you give her. Check for the babies pulse, if it is not present, do chest compressions similar to those you were doing earlier. Alternate 30 chest compressions with 2 breaths via mouth to mouth.
Do not stop the CPR until baby recovers or you reach hospital.
If done properly, this immediate care can be life saving.
Do not perform these steps if the infant is coughing forcefully or has a strong cry since these actions usually cause the object to dislodge.

SUNBURN
Treatment for  Sunburn

• The goals of most sunburn treatments are to make your child comfortable and ease the pain, especially in the first few days when the sunburn is usually the most painful. Typical treatments or first aid for sunburns can include:
• giving your child extra fluids so that he doesn't get dehydrated
• pain-killers  if necessary
• cool wet compresses and soothing lotions, such as those that contain aloe- vera

cool baths and showers

SWALLOWED OBJECTS

• If your baby swallowed something that's not sharp or otherwise potentially dangerous and it doesn't seem stuck in her throat, she'll probably do just fine on her own, passing the object in her stool and ending up no worse for the experience.
• While you wait, keep a close eye on her and call her doctor if she starts vomiting, drooling, refusing to eat, running a fever, coughing, wheezing, or making a whistling sound when she inhales. Give the doctor a call if you don't see the object in your baby's diaper in the next couple of days. (To check, put your baby's poop in a strainer and run hot water over it.)
• If your baby may have swallowed something sharp (like a toothpick or needle) or otherwise dangerous (like a watch battery or more than one small magnet), take her to the doctor right away even if she seems fine. These things may need to be removed rather than allowed to pass because they may perforate your baby's esophagus, stomach, or intestines; leach dangerous substances; or even create a small electric current.

SPLINTERS
If the splinter's sticking out from the skin far enough, you may be able to pull it out easily using just the tweezers. Grasp it gently at the base (where it emerges from the skin) with the tweezers and pull it straight out, tugging in the same direction it's pointed. If it doesn't slide right out, don't pick at it — you don't want to break a piece off and leave the rest embedded.

If a very small splinter is protruding, on the other hand, you may be able to remove it by pressing a piece of strong sticky tape to the site and then lifting up.

If a splinter is embedded in the skin with little or no piece sticking out for you to grab, you'll need to use the sterilized needle. First, soak the area in warm water for a few minutes to soften the skin. Then use the needle to gently create a slit in the skin right over the embedded part and carefully remove the splinter with tweezers.

When the splinter is out, wash the whole area thoroughly with soap and warm water. Then cover the spot with a thin film of antibiotic ointment and an adhesive bandage.

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LIFESAVER FOR EXPECTANT MOTHERS
RESUSCITATION FOR EXPECTANT MOTHERS

• Lean close to her face and turn toward her chest to listen, look and feel for breathing. If there is no air and her chest does not rise and fall, commence CPR.
• Check if anything is blocking her airway (throat area). If anything is found, remove it.
• Tilt her head slightly so that her chin is slightly higher than the rest of her face.
• Pinch her nose shut as and seal her mouth with your lips to give one breath. Release her nose, inhale and give her one more breath while pinching her nose again. Maintain the head tilt-chin lift while performing the two rescue breaths.
• Immediately interlace the fingers of both hands, one hand on top of the other, and place the heal of the bottom hand on the center of the victim's chest. Lean over her chest so both shoulders are directly over the hands and both elbows are completely locked.
• Compress her chest about 1.5 to 2 inches for 30 compressions. Count aloud, "One and two and three and four and..." up to 30.
• Tilt her head and lift her chin to give her two breaths.
• Continue cycles of 30 compressions and two breaths until exhaustion, an automated external defibrillator is ready to use, another person trained in CPR arrives and takes over, the scene becomes unsafe or the pregnant victim shows signs of breathing

     
CHOKING
GENERAL FIRST AID FOR MINOR CHOKING

• If casualty is breathing encourage her to continue coughing.
• Remove any obvious obstruction from the mouth.

GENERAL FIRST AID FOR MAJOR CHOKING

1. BACK BLOWS

• Support the upper body with one hand.
• Help  the casualty lean well forward
• Give up to five sharp blows between her/his shoulder blades with the heel of your hand.
• Stop if the obstruction clears
• Check their mouth
• ABDOMINAL THRUST
• Stand behind the casualty and put both arms around the upper part of the abdomen.
• Make the casualty bend forward.
• Clench your fist and place it between the navel and the bottom of her breast bone.
• Grasp your fist firmly with your other hand.
• Pull sharply inwards and upwards up to five times.
• Check the mouth for any obstruction.
• If obstruction has not cleared, repeat the back blows and abdominal thrust up to three times.
• Check the mouth after each step.
• If the obstruction has not cleared call for emergency help and continue until help arrives or casualty loses consciousness.

CHOKING IN EXPECTANT MOTHERS

•  Ask the victim whether she is pregnant, unless it is obvious, when the woman doesn't appear to be pregnant.
• Position yourself behind the choking woman.
• Lean the victim forward slightly and tilt her head downward, allowing gravity to help you dislodge the stuck food.
• Wrap your arms around the victim with your arms under her armpits.
• Make a fist with one hand.
• Place your fist with the thumb against the center of the victim's breastbone.
• Cover your fist with your other hand.
• Apply chest thrusts against the center of the woman's breastbone. Chest thrusts should be firm and move inward and downwards.
• Continue giving chest thrusts until the victim can breathe, medical help arrives or the woman loses consciousness.
• Cover the victim to keep her warm once the object is expelled, and stay with her until medical help arrives.