Police officers save life of little girl choking on sweet

TWO fast-thinking National Police officers in Spain have saved the life of a girl they found unable to breathe and unconscious.

The two-year-old girl, who was with her mother, had choked on a sweet in Madrid.

The officers performed the Heimlich manoeuvre for babies which involved putting the child on the forearm, face-down and giving sharp back blows with the heel of one hand in the middle of the back between the shoulder blades.

After a few attempts they managed to expel the sweet from her air passages and the girl then began to cough and breathe normally.

Paramedics called to the scene praised the two officers for their quick actions.

NHS UK tips on helping a choking child

• If you can see the object, try to remove it. Don’t poke blindly or repeatedly with your fingers. You could make things worse by pushing the object further in and making it harder to remove.
• If your child is coughing loudly, there’s no need to do anything. Encourage them to carry on coughing and don’t leave them.
• If your child’s coughing is not effective (it’s silent or they can’t breathe in properly), shout for help immediately and decide whether they’re still conscious.• If your child is still conscious, but they’re either not coughing or their coughing is not effective, use back blows (see below).Back blows for babies under one year
• Sit down and lay your baby face down along your thighs, supporting their head with your hand.
• Give up to five sharp back blows with the heel of one hand in the middle of the back between the shoulder blades.

Back blows for children over one year
• Lay a small child face down on your lap as you would a baby.
• If this isn’t possible, support your child in a forward-leaning position and give five back blows from behind.

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