A newborn baby boy who went to cardiac arrest while being delivered was introduced to the team who saved his life recently.

Kent parents, Charlotte and Matt, very proudly showed off their four-month-old son, George, as they thanked their son’s lifesavers at an emotional reunion at Dartford Ambulance Station.

The family got to meet some of the team who helped when George slipped into cardiac arrest having been starved of oxygen as a result of becoming stuck in the birthing canal.

Charlotte had enjoyed a smooth pregnancy and was looking forward to welcoming their baby boy at their home in Swanley when her contractions began on 25 January.

With midwives by her side, during the birth George experienced shoulder dystocia which is a delivery complication that occurs when the baby’s head has been born, but one of the shoulders becomes stuck behind the mother’s pubic bone, delaying the birth of the baby’s body.

As a result, midwives called for emergency assistance and Resource Dispatcher Freya Eales and Dispatch Team Leader Teresa Gibbs assigned a team to attend the scene. This saw Emergency Care Support Worker, Oliver Broom and Paramedic, Isabella Black arriving first on scene. George was born a short time after they arrived but after being starved of oxygen for seven minutes, he went into cardiac arrest.

Student Paramedic, Stuart Abbott, Paramedic, Zara Toynton, Associate Ambulance Practitioner, Stephanie Wheeler and Operational Team Leader, Dan Beaumont followed with the Air Ambulance Charity dispatching their rapid response car to the home.

With out of hospital survival rates for newborns after cardiac arrest being as low as 12 per cent in the UK and even lower rates of neurologically intact survival, the team did an amazing job of achieving a return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) on George.

A 10-day stay in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Medway Maritime saw George go on to make a good recovery. As a result, over next two years George will be monitored with the hope that he has no long-lasting effects of his cardiac arrest.

The team enjoyed a cuddle with baby George and heard more about his recovery since they last saw him in January.

To learn CPR and to find out the crucial role that CPR plays in saving lives, click here.

Thanking Freya, Teresa, Stuart, Zara, Stephanie Dan, Ollie and Isabella who they met, Matt said “Thank you really doesn’t feel enough. It’s hard to put into words how we feel as without you, we wouldn’t be here with George today.”

Charlotte said “It was overwhelming to be able to meet everyone again and talk it all through, as it was a total whirlwind that afternoon. I can’t thank them enough for everything they did for our family. They really are superheroes.”

Teresa said “From finding out that George had an extremely positive outcome, to getting to meet him, Charlotte and Matt, it was an absolute pleasure and I’m very proud to have played a part in his survival.”

Stephanie said “I was over the moon to be able to reunite with baby George, Charlotte and Matt. It made my week, and it was a really special reminder of the difference that we can make to our patients. I wish them nothing but the best for their future.”