The Critical Care International community healthcare needs assessment identified fatal deficiencies in the training of local nurses and midwives with regards to their care of new-born children. Some clinics had even been donated the necessary equipment by an NGO but had never been taught how to use it. With the support of the client, a Critical Care International consultant designed a teaching program based upon international best practice guidelines and trained 12 healthcare workers in new-born resuscitation. Over half of the students report that they use the skills taught at least once a week to save a baby who they believe would have otherwise died. This intervention was subsequently extended to similar effect to many healthcare workers locally and demonstrated how a focussed healthcare intervention can save lives in a binary fashion when applied in an education and resource deprived environment.