By The Survivors Club Staff
February 16, 2010

When he returned home from Iraq and began training as a 911 dispatcher, Chris Scott could not know that his new job would one day save the life of his 6-month old son. On February 4, baby Jacob was choking and not breathing, and when his panicked mother called 911, it was Chris' voice that successfully guided her through the proper procedure, according to media reports.

Janna Scott followed her husband's instructions to clear the boy's airway by slapping him on the back until he coughed up the piece of plastic he was choking on. In fact, when emergency responders arrived the baby was well again and did not need to be taken to hospital.

According to Chris, the most important - but also challenging - part was to separate himself from the relationship "so I wouldn't take it so personally," he said, quoted by WFMY News 2.

"Just do it professionally and as calm as possible," he added.

Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that of the approximately 17,000 cases of pediatric choking in 2001, 60 percent were related to food and 31 percent were related to non-food substances such as toys.

Safety experts from Healthline.com recommend performing the Heimlich maneuver on an individual choking on a foreign object. In order to do so, the rescuer stands behind the victim, encircles their waist, makes a fist with one hand and places the other hand on top, positioned below the rib cage and above the waist. The rescuer then applies pressure by a series of upward and inward thrusts to force the foreign object back up the victim's trachea.

However, as the maneuver is not performed on infants under 1 year of age, caregivers should administer a series of back blows and chest thrusts in order to dislodge the foreign object.