Only about 30 percent of people in the U.S. know how to perform CPR. And that statistic makes the story of one Georgia woman even more remarkable after a 9-year-old boy showed her how to perform CPR on her newborn baby.
Susanna Rohm said she experienced a parent’s worst nightmare: Her 2-month-old son, Isiah, was not breathing.
"I noticed he looked pale, and so I looked at his arm and his leg and they were limp," Rohm told a Fox Atlanta affiliate. "Then I noticed that he looked like he wasn't alive."
In a panic, she dropped and broke her cellphone. Without a landline, Rohm was forced to run into the street, screaming for help as her son’s life hung in the balance.
"I had him in my arms and still screaming over and over. Then I ran outside. I saw two boys playing across the street, and I yelled, 'Go ask your parents to call 911,'" Rohm said.
But the two boys were able to do more than help. Nine-year-old Ethan Wilson sprang into action, showing Rohm how to perform CPR on young Isiah while 10-year-old Rocky Hurt helped as well. Rocky says he learned the CPR technique from a poster in a health class at their school, Sedalia Park Elementary.
"I was thinking we better go out there to help and actually call 911 instead of getting scared," Ethan said.
“I told her to push on the baby’s chest five to 10 times with only two fingers, tilt back the baby’s head, plug the baby’s nose and breathe into the baby’s mouth,” Ethan said in a second interview with local NBC affiliate WXIA.
Eventually, Isiah began crying and was breathing again. He spent two nights in a local hospital, where he was diagnosed with sleep apnea.
"If the little boy hadn't shown me how to do the compressions right here ... and said that in that moment, my baby would not be alive right now. And I am incredibly grateful," Rohm said.
Susanna Rohm said she experienced a parent’s worst nightmare: Her 2-month-old son, Isiah, was not breathing.
"I noticed he looked pale, and so I looked at his arm and his leg and they were limp," Rohm told a Fox Atlanta affiliate. "Then I noticed that he looked like he wasn't alive."
In a panic, she dropped and broke her cellphone. Without a landline, Rohm was forced to run into the street, screaming for help as her son’s life hung in the balance.
"I had him in my arms and still screaming over and over. Then I ran outside. I saw two boys playing across the street, and I yelled, 'Go ask your parents to call 911,'" Rohm said.
But the two boys were able to do more than help. Nine-year-old Ethan Wilson sprang into action, showing Rohm how to perform CPR on young Isiah while 10-year-old Rocky Hurt helped as well. Rocky says he learned the CPR technique from a poster in a health class at their school, Sedalia Park Elementary.
"I was thinking we better go out there to help and actually call 911 instead of getting scared," Ethan said.
“I told her to push on the baby’s chest five to 10 times with only two fingers, tilt back the baby’s head, plug the baby’s nose and breathe into the baby’s mouth,” Ethan said in a second interview with local NBC affiliate WXIA.
Eventually, Isiah began crying and was breathing again. He spent two nights in a local hospital, where he was diagnosed with sleep apnea.
"If the little boy hadn't shown me how to do the compressions right here ... and said that in that moment, my baby would not be alive right now. And I am incredibly grateful," Rohm said.