About Helping Babies Breathe

Those of us living in a developed country take obstetric and newborn care for granted. Hospitals are accessible and even those who choose to deliver their babies at home, typically do so with a well trained birth attendant and with back up obstetric and newborn care available.  Yet in developing countries, this access to care is a luxury, not the norm.  In many cases, due to distance from health care or hospital, and/or lack of transportation, many babies are delivered at home.  Traditional birth attendants are trained by the one before them, handing down their knowledge in a time-honored tradition.  And in many of these developing countries, a baby who does not breathe immediately at birth will not survive.

This information is from the AAP website and will help you understand a little better about the program.

Objective of HBB

To ensure that all babies are born with a skilled birth attendant present.

The Curriculum

Helping Babies Breathe is a neonatal resuscitation curriculum for resource-limited circumstances. It was developed on the premise that assessment at birth and simple newborn care are things that every baby deserves. The initial steps taught in HBB can save lives and give a much better start to many babies who struggle to breathe at birth. The focus is to meet the needs of every baby born.

The Golden Minute®

Helping Babies Breathe emphasizes skilled attendants at birth, assessment of every baby, temperature support, stimulation to breathe, and assisted ventilation as needed, all within "The Golden Minute" after birth.

Our Partners

Helping Babies Breathe is an initiative of the American Academy of Pediatrics and many partners, including the US Agency for International Development (USAID), The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Saving Newborn Lives/Save the Children, and the Millennium Villages Project. The curriculum was developed with input from the World Health Organization (WHO). All this is made possible by an unrestricted educational grant from the Laerdal Foundation for Acute Medicine, and support from Latter-day Saint Charities.