Members of the Helping Babies Breathe Global Development Alliance

Every child deserves a fifth birthday. To reach five years, though, a child must take his or her first breath of life in the first minute following birth. The World Health Organization estimates approximately one million babies die each year from birth asphyxia, a condition in which babies do not breathe on their own immediately following delivery.

Developed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Helping Babies BreatheSM (HBB) initiative was designed to equip birth attendants in developing countries with the skills they need to successfully resuscitate babies who do not breathe on their own. At the center of HBB is the concept of The Golden MinuteSM: within one minute of birth, a baby should be breathing well or should be ventilated with a bag and mask.

The effectiveness of the HBB curriculum is evident in the lives saved for babies like little Job in Kenya and Shakila’s baby in Afghanistan.  Both were born without a cry and in desperate need to breathe.  When both Shakila’s baby and Job were born, their mothers thought they were dead.  Thankfully, Dr. Shifajo in Afghanistan and Nurse Mary Wekesa in Kenya were trained in HBB, and knew hope was not lost.  They vigorously rubbed and dried the babies. When that did not stimulate them to breathe, they used a suction bulb to clear their mouth and nose, and used a bag-and-mask device to help push air into their lungs until they took their first glorious breaths.