Helping Babies Breathe

Helping Babies Breathe^® Project Report                                        July 2012

Helping Babies Breathe (HBB) continues rapid implementation,
particularly throughout Eastern Africa.  It has been introduced into 48 countries now,
21 of which are supported by USAID.  HBB
has been introduced in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, 
Cambodia, East Timor, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Mongolia, Pakistan,
Thailand, Angola, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia,
Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Mali, Malawi, Mozambique, Morocco, Namibia,
Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia,
Zimbabwe, Georgia, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, and
Trinidad/Tobago. Of these countries, about 10 have developed national rollout
plans.

Our many partners have supported the training of at least 80,000
health providers since the launch in June 2010. 
Preliminary data from one country in Africa shows a 45% decline in
newborn deaths from birth asphyxia.  The
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
has begun their impact evaluation of HBB in Kenya.  We look forward to positive results from that
study.

Notable accomplishments for this period include:

• At the Child Survival Call to Action forum
  convened by the Governments of the United States, India, and Ethiopia, and
  organized in close collaboration with UNICEF, a global roadmap
  advocated for five strategic shifts, including targeting neonatal conditions,
  to end preventable child deaths.
• In collaboration with the UN Commission on Life Saving Commodities for
  Women and Children, Global Development Alliance (GDA) partners analyzed the global
  landscape on status, needs,
  and constraints regarding resuscitation devices (bag and mask, suction bulbs),
  and submitted recommendations
  to increase access to them. 
  Resuscitation devices are one of 13 commodities that have been
  identified by the UN Commission as essential but under-utilized. 
• HBB was voted by Women Deliver as one
  of 50 most inspiring ideas and solutions. 
  More than 6,000 people voted
  from around the world.
• Members of the GDA participated in an expert
  technical consultation convened by the WHO to review and update the Basic Newborn Resuscitation Guidelines.  TheAAP response to the guidelines and how they apply to HBB can be found on www.helpingbabiesbreathe.org  
• In an interview with Forbes, the USAID Administrator, Dr. Rajiv Shah, cited the
  HBB GDA as one of the most effective partnerships that USAID has entered into.
• A primary resource for HBB facilitators, the HBB
  Facilitator Video is now available for free access on www.helpingbabiesbreathe.org. 

The AAP and our many HBB implementing partners continue to
appreciate the generosity of all those who have supported the HBB
initiative.  Please feel free to contact
us at hbb@aap.org if you have any ideas to
spread the word about HBB. 

Submitted by Eileen
Hopkins Schoen, Manager, Helping Babies Breathe Initiative, American Academy
of Pediatrics.