Each year tens of thousands of new born babies across India are saved from death or serious medical problems because of neonatal resuscitation training sponsored by LDS Charities, a sister organization of The Indian Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This training focuses on an infant’s “First Golden Minute” of life. It equips doctors and medical personnel to help a baby that is born not breathing to take that first breath of life and then to breathe on its own. This miracle of life is due, in large part, to the partnership formed by the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) and LDS Charities.
Over the last six years LDS Charities has been involved in providing “train the trainer” instruction and expertise from prominent LDS pediatricians. These trainers then pass their new found skills on to others in the medical field throughout India. In that time almost 138,000 medical professionals have been trained in the Government and private sector through this program. Of the 27 million babies born in India each year, this program has resulted in hundreds of thousands of infant lives saved.
This year the training took place in the central India city of Indore. Three prominent LDS pediatricians, Dr. Richard Bell from California, Dr. David Denton from Idaho, and Dr. Ronald Stoddard from Utah conducted the training of over eighty Indian pediatricians who will now serve as trainers to thousands more throughout the country.
Dr. Naveen Thacker, past president of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics and member of the International Pediatric Association Standing Committee said, “The roll of LDS Charities in the success of the neonatal resuscitation program in India is immense. Without their help and support India would not be at the milestone we are today.”
Dr. Vikram Datta, NNF secretary and Professor of Neonatology echoed this sentiment by saying, “So many lives can be saved through this program and LDS Charities has, and will continue to be a very important part of it. We need them here and look forward to a strong continued partnership.”
The birth of every new born is a potential medical emergency. As India becomes a leader in having medical personnel trained to handle such situations, more and more of these emergencies will end in babies taking those first breaths on their own and starting a healthy life. This is what the Indian Academy of Pediatrics and the LDS Charities partnership in India is all about.
As this strong partnership and the training goes forward the Indian Academy of Pediatrics goal is to have one person at every delivery trained in neonatal resuscitation. With many of the deliveries being conducted in small rural villages, even larger numbers of trainers in each of the 611 districts in India will be required. Over the next five years the objective is to train an additional 200,000 health personnel in neonatal resuscitation. LDS Charities will be instrumental in this goals attainment.
LDS Charities is sponsored by The Indian Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints