Thousands of babies end up in the E.R. due to choking every year. Choking should never be taken lightly. Babies can choke on food, toys and other stuffs. We should always be careful in these matters as a single negligence of us can result in a devastating manner.
We always tend to take good care of our babies but despite our care sometimes babies end up choking. Many parents however don’t know how to react when a baby chokes. But thanks to St. John’s Ambulance which has created this wonderful video teaching how to react and what to do when a baby chokes.
This video gives caretakers a four-step method for how to react when a baby chokes.
Step 0 is to verify that the baby is actually choking and not just coughing or gagging. If they can make noise and take breaths, they are most likely not choking. If they cannot cough or cry or make noise, it is because their airway is restricted and they are choking–continue on with the following steps.
- Dial the emergency number 911 or 999, depending upon your country. Put the phone on speaker so you can continue with the steps below. (The video says do this last but you should probably do it first if emergency services will take longer than a few minutes to get to your location.
- Place the baby facedown on your thigh or forearm and deliver four or five blows to the back between the shoulder blades.
- If that does not work, flip the baby on its back and deliver four or five compressions to the breastbone. Push hard enough to compress the chest about one-third of the way down.
- Repeat if that does not work and talk to the emergency operator while you are doing this.
Watch this video for full instructions and tell us what you think about it.
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