The first minute after the birth of a newborn is a period of anxiety for parents and health providers, as the newborn undergoes rapid and significant physiological changes to adjust to a hostile environment outside her mother's womb. While a majority of babies go through this transition with minimal assistance from those attending the labor, about 10% of newborns require varying degrees of assistance. Failure to provide the required assistance at this time could cause death, or birth asphyxia, with attendant long term complications.

Birth asphyxia contributes to about 23% of the one million neonatal deaths in India.

Neonatal Resuscitation should be carried out in all settings where babies are born. Individuals at all levels require training, and seldom used skills need to be maintained, so that, when required, resuscitation can be carried out efficiently and effectively.

An trained person in Basic Newborn care and resuscitation is required at every delivery as it is not possible to always anticipate which baby will have problem.