Samuel Gepaya BSN – II RLE Nursery – B1

Farsy, a 25 year-old woman, was brought to your Health Clinic after being in labor for 38 hours
at home. Soon after she reached you, she gave birth to a full term baby boy. You assessed the baby and
found he was not making any breathing effort, he had no movement of his limbs and his whole body
was covered with meconium-stained amniotic fluid. When you dried him and applied tactile stimulation,
the baby still didn’t show any effort to breathe.

1. Is this baby asphyxiated? If yes, what is the degree of asphyxia?

Yes, Severe asphyxia.

2. What are your immediate next steps? Then what do you do?

After rapid assessment, the next immediate priority is to initiate and maintain adequate respiration on
the newborn. It can be done through resuscitation by following the ABCD; Establish Airway, Breathing,
Circulation, and Drugs or establish airway, expand lungs, and effective ventilation, plus chest
compressions if needed. Since the newborn is in serve asphyxia, we should include cardiac massage.

3. Could the birth complication in this newborn have been prevented, and if so, how? (apply your labor
and delivery knowledge)

The birth complication can be prevented if Farsy had avoided prolonged labor by going to the nearest
health clinic or hospital as soon as her water or amniotic sac break. Also prolonged labor can be avoided
by providing comfort measures such as relaxations, breathing techniques, and positional changes.