When Jeanne Eriksen attended a course in infant and child basic life support, she had no idea that she would be learning techniques which, soon afterwards, she would put into practice to save her granddaughter’s life.

Jeanne, who works at Noble’s Hospital as the Isle of Man air ambulance co-ordinator, admits now that she was slightly reluctant to do the two-hour course.

’At the time I thought I could have been doing something else,’ she said.

Luckily, as it turns out, the course, delivered by lead resuscitation officer Paul Ellis, is part of mandatory training for the staff at the hospital, even those like Jeanne, whose role is administrative.

Jeanne was in Norway visiting her eldest daughter, Vicki, and her husband, Ole, and three grandchildren, who live there.

Vicki and her husband were out and Jeanne was giving her baby granddaughter, Lilly Aileen, who is eight-and-a-half months old, her evening bath. Jeanne’s recollection of how the life-threatening incident then unfolded shows how easily one can occur.

She said: ’I was sitting next to Lilly, close enough to reach out and touch her. She was in a baby bathtub, in two inches of water.

’She pooped in the water so I said: "Oh Lilly what have you done?"

’When she heard my voice she got all excited. Then, as I stood up to get her, I slipped on some water on the tiles.’

When Jeanne came to, Lilly was face down in the bathtub, not breathing.

Then the training Jeanne had done with Paul kicked in.

She said: ’I quickly went into "work mode", assessed my granddaughter, telephoned for an ambulance and started CPR.

’There were three police cars, two ambulances and a helicopter sent out.

’Thankfully, she was already breathing by herself by the time the ambulance arrived.’

Vicki and her husband had also rushed home and they went to the hospital with Lilly while Jeanne stayed with her two older grandchildren, Theodore and Sebastian.

Lilly recovered well but, in the aftermath, it really brought home to Jeanne how different the outcome might have been when she heard other people’s reactions to what had happened. She recalled: ’All the neighbours were saying "We wouldn’t have known what to do".

’The police, the doctors and the ambulance people said if it had been normal grandparents the child could either have died or been left brain damaged because they wouldn’t have known what to do.’

impact

Jeanne wrote to thank resuscitation officer Paul Ellis, saying: ’I would like to send you this letter to really show how your delivery of the basic life support course can make an impact on people’s lives.

’I know this training is mandatory for me as a healthcare professional but this is a story that shows that the job you do as a teacher and the way you deliver the infant and child basic life support is understandable, clear and concise.

’I have been told that what I did was exactly what I should have done, and this I put down to you, Paul.

’Thank you for your teaching. It saved my granddaughter’s life.’

Jeanne pointed out that both University College Isle of Man and St John Ambulance offer similar courses. Her husband has now taken one.

She suggested: ’When you’re thinking what to give your parents - give them a course - it can save lives. The point is that you feel you can do something, you can start something. Anything is better than nothing.’