Toddler gets 12 stitches on tongue after fall at preschool; mother claims school downplayed injury
The child, Lisa, was enrolled at Little Footprints Preschool's branch in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5. According to Shin Min Daily News, the incident occurred on July 3.
Her mother, Ms Renny Izzatie, a 35-year-old tutor, said she was notified by a teacher around 12.43pm that Lisa had fallen while playing alone and had bitten her tongue.
"The teacher said the bleeding had stopped, and my daughter had stopped crying, so I assumed the injury was minor," Ms Renny said.
No further details were given, and Lisa was even allowed to continue napping. When Ms Renny arrived to pick her up around 2pm, the teacher apologised, and Lisa appeared calm.
It was only during the car ride home that she inspected her daughter's mouth and discovered a deep gash on her tongue.
When she asked the school for more details, she was told Lisa had fallen on her bottom, reported Shin Min. She requested to view CCTV footage, but the school said it would review the footage internally and update her on its findings.
"The so-called 'minor injury' turned out to be very serious," said Ms Renny, adding that Lisa had been crying intermittently. "She would point to her tongue and say: 'Mama, pain'. She would drool, and there was blood in her saliva."
Lisa was taken to KK Women's and Children's Hospital later that day, where she underwent a minor operation under general anaesthesia and received 12 stitches. "Seeing her small body on the table just broke me," said Ms Renny in her Instagram stories.
Lisa was discharged the next day and is recovering at home.
However, Ms Renny said she remains unsure if there will be any long-term effects on her daughter's speech, or the movement and sensation of her tongue.
She stressed in her stories that she does not blame the school for the fall itself, acknowledging that accidents can happen. But she was upset about how the incident was handled and has since filed a police report.
"They're not medical professionals, so it's not up to them (to decide) what's serious and what's not," she added.
What made her more angry was "the fact that they downplayed the whole situation about the fall. They didn't even mention how big or deep the cut was," she said in her story.
Ms Renny later said the school had submitted the CCTV footage to the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA), but she was not allowed to view it.
In response to queries from Shin Min, the police confirmed that a report was filed and investigations are ongoing.
Preschool operator cooperating with ECDA
ECDA has launched an investigation into the incident. A spokesman said: "The safety of our children is paramount, and if the investigation reveals any irregularities, appropriate action will be taken against the school or staff."
The preschool's parent company, Babilou Family Singapore, said it is cooperating with ECDA but declined to provide further comment.
A spokesperson said the school had reached out to the family to offer assistance, and expressed relief that the child was recovering.
Mother transfers child to another school
Still shaken by the incident, Shin Min said Ms Renny decided to withdraw Lisa from the preschool and enrol her elsewhere.
"The school neither informed me of the full extent of her injury nor sent her to the hospital. They clearly did not take it seriously," she said.
She added that she had already notified the school of her decision via email.
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