Essential Newborn Care(ENC) is care that every newborn baby needs regardless of where it is born or its size. ENC should be applied immediately after the baby is born and continued for at least the first 7 days after birth. Many ENC interventions are simple and can be provided by a qualified Nurse, Skilled Birth Attendant(SBA) or a trained Community Health Worker

Most newborn deaths can be prevented by mothers and CHWs (Community Health Workers) carrying out the following healthy practises:

Keep baby warm: Care givers and mothers make sure the newborn baby is immediately dried after birth, placed on the abdomen(skin to skin), covered with a clean towel/cloth and a hat on the head. They make sure the baby is NOT bathed for the first 24 hours. 

Help baby breathe: Care givers and mothers assist the newborn baby to take its first breath by immediately rubbing its back and feet to stimulate it to cry and by clearing the mouth if it having any difficulty in breathing

Keep baby clean: Care givers and mothers wash their hands before touching the newborn baby, they cut the umbilical cord with a clean blade, they keep the cord area clean and dry, they do not put anything on the cord stump(exception in some country/district contexts-care giver or mother applies chlorhexidine antiseptic (gel or liquid) as soon possible after cutting the cord and then daily for 7 days)

Help baby feed: Care givers and mothers assist the newborn baby to breastfeed within 1 hour after birth and make sure the baby receives the first milk (colostrum) and only breast milk and no other fluids for the first 6 months

Help the small baby survive: Care givers and mothers give extra special care to the small baby by practicing ENC plus kangaroo mother care(KMC) which means placing it naked skin to skin on the mother's chest and continuing this day and night cleaning airway and stimulating crying drying the baby with a clean, dry cloth, covering the head, without wiping the vernix caseosa, and refraining from bathing the baby for 24 hours immediate warming by placing baby in skin-to-skin contact with mother (use KMC for LBW baby) cleaning umbilical cord and wiping eyes with a clean cloth immediate and exclusive breast-feeding

Having been nourished by the pregnant woman for nine months in the womb the most important need of a newborn for the first 24 - 48 hours is protection. Unlike adults, who can readily adjust to changes in temperature, newborns become hot or cold more quickly and can easily die from rapid changes in temperature. A newborn does not have a mature system to fight infections so it is essential to breast-feed exclusively which provides colostrum combined with warming (skin-to skin contact and the act of loving care).