Life-saving airway kits for newborn babies

Thanks to your generous donations, we funded five emergency bronchoscope kits to urgently save babies’ lives when they cannot breathe and where no other ventilation option is possible.

The kits are a game changer in saving young lives when there is no airway, and time and resource are critical.

They are designed specifically for little ones and are used in emergency situations when an anaesthetist cannot get the traditional ventilation tube down to improve the airway.

The kits are placed in strategic locations across NHS Lothian, meaning they are readily available for use at key sites of local critical care. They are hand-held, portable and battery-powered, so consultants can grab them and carry them by hand as they go urgently to the infant in need.

It is hoped the kits will never be needed, but in the event that they are, every second counts in improving a baby’s chance of survival.