Chapter 82: Matt Recommends – Saving Baby's Life DVD

Geraldine Hickey, an award-winning neonatal intensive care nurse, has created Saving Baby's Life, a DVD with instructions for new parents about how to respond to a choking, respiratory, or cardiac emergency experienced by your infant or newborn. I heartily recommend that all first-time parents get a copy, which provides exactly what it promises: simple, concise, accurate, and effective instruction. Even a seasoned parent who has a newborn and never learned these life saving techniques would be advised to pick up a copy.

I am a certified New Jersey EMT and have served on a first aid squad for more than twenty years, but even I found this DVD useful. There are differences between adult and infant CPR, but Hickey doesn't bog the DVD down with comparisons. She focuses her comments squarely on the infant's care. She gets right to the point and shares her knowledge. Clearly and articulately, Hickey describes the entire process of performing rescue breathing, CPR, and dislodging an object from an infant's airway. When it comes to emergency situations for infants, these are the ones a new parent most needs to know how to address.

She also helps explain when to call 911. Even as a trained EMT, I would call 911 to activate the emergency response system. A child who goes into cardiac arrest, for example, needs to be seen by a doctor.

The creator of Baby Zone & Beyond LLC, Hickey also discusses ways to prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, with helpful guidance for new parents such as having the child sleep on its back, keeping infants away from second-hand smoke, and keeping potential obstacles from cluttering the basinette or crib. The stuffed elephant is cute, but it should not be in the crib of an infant.

Again, I recommend that parents of newborns pick up a copy of this professionally produced DVD, which is about 20 minutes long and worth every second. Even those who have had adult CPR courses would benefit from this instruction.

I received no compensation for this review. It's part of my new focus on this blog of products for infants and children — a way to offer my knowledge and initial impressions to those parents like me who are new to this wonderful stage of life. I'm proud to have made this the first product I review on this site. Emergency care is too important to put on the back burner.