Latest news with #infants
CTV News
22-07-2025
- CTV News
Woman accused of impaired driving in L'Ange-Gardien, Que. had infants in the car
Police in western Quebec say a 34-year-old woman who was pulled over on suspicion of impaired driving had two infants in the car. MRC des Collines de l'Outaouais police said in a news release that officers saw a someone driving erratically in the L'Ange-Gardien area Sunday evening. When the driver was pulled over, police said she registered double the legal alcohol limit on a breath test. Her partner, who does not have a driver's licence, was in the car and was even more intoxicated, according to police. Two babies, aged five months and 17 months, were also in the car. The woman received an automatic roadside licence suspension of 90 days, police said, and her vehicle has been impounded for 30 days. She is due in court to face charges. The father and the two children were taken to a friend's home to rest.
Daily Mail
17-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Melbourne daycare worker accused of shocking abuse against children had been sacked from previous job - as calls grow for national childcare register
It's been revealed that a childcare worker accused of abusing infants was sacked from one facility, as a former royal commissioner castigated authorities for dragging their feet on record-keeping. Joshua Dale Brown, 26, has been charged with more than 70 sex offences against eight alleged victims aged under two at a childcare centre in Melbourne. Authorities have previously said there were no known complaints against him, however, childcare giant Nido Early Learning has confirmed Brown was sacked while on probation after completing 18 shifts at a centre in Werribee, in Melbourne's west. The incident happened before he started working at G8-owned Creative Garden centre, at Point Cook in Melbourne's southwest, where he is accused of abusing children between April 2022 and January 2023. A Nido Early Learning spokesperson said Brown was terminated over 'unsatisfactory attention' given to an internal incident report related to one child's behaviour towards another child. 'The action did not relate to any behaviour by the individual towards a child,' they said. 'We have zero tolerance for the non-compliance to our internal policies, no matter how trivial they sound to external parties.' Brown was also subject to two misconduct investigations while he was working at G8, both of which found the non-sexual claims involving children were substantiated. He was suspended and then resigned after the second investigation. Both incidents came after the alleged abuse for which he has been charged. The parents of about 2000 children who crossed paths with Brown have been told to get them tested for infectious diseases. His work history was updated this week to include four new centres. Investigators have blamed delays on gathering information on his employment on a lack of centralised records, revealing they had to get search warrants to obtain handwritten records, shift rosters and other critical data. Federal and state jurisdictions have promised to fast-track a national register for childcare workers, after it was discovered Brown had worked at 24 facilities since 2017. New laws to strip dodgy childcare centres of federal funding and other changes will be introduced by the government when parliament resumes, however the Victorian coalition is concerned that may not be enough to prevent abuse. 'The government must ensure its proposed legislation improves safety and removes the risk of this ever happening again,' early learning spokesperson Zoe McKenzie said. Poor record keeping and information sharing in sectors dealing with children were key issues highlighted in the 2017 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. The commission's recommendations included improving teacher and worker registrations, improving the quality of institutional record keeping, the ability to exchange information between facilities and for states and territories to keep better track of workers employed in their jurisdictions. While all nine governments in Australia accepted the recommendations, it's been difficult to get them to act, former royal commissioner Robert Fitzgerald said. 'Ten years on from our recommendations around information sharing and record keeping, the job has not yet been done and it has not been done because the nine governments of Australia have not committed the willpower to get it done in a timely manner,' Mr Fitzgerald told AAP. He accused some states and territories of being particularly slow in implementing significant recommendations. 'These are all manageable. These are all achievable and my disappointment is that progress has been made, but the job should have been done,' Mr Fitzgerald said. The former commissioner said every gap left in safeguarding the sector meant children were put at risk. Adequate record keeping and information sharing can inform subsequent employers of a history of concern, not necessarily convictions, and can provide authorities with an insight into any patterns of abuse. But the former commissioner warned that workers' rights can't be abandoned where complaints or criminal action have not been substantiated. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
Medscape
16-07-2025
- Health
- Medscape
Perinatal Substance Use: Ups Risk for Mothers and Babies?
TOPLINE: Among individuals with perinatal substance use disorder, the odds of maternal and neonatal morbidity and infant mortality were increased and were influenced by factors such as location, type of substance used, and demographics. METHODOLOGY: A retrospective cohort study was conducted in British Columbia, Canada, to assess the link between clinical and sociodemographic factors and maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality among people with perinatal substance use disorder. A total of 22,856 individuals with perinatal substance use disorder (median maternal age, 28 years), linked to 27,637 deliveries and 27,774 live births, were identified using data from nine linked health administrative databases from April 2010 to March 2021. Perinatal substance use disorder was defined by the presence of opioid, alcohol, or other substance use disorders within the period from 12 months before the first pregnancy-related healthcare record to delivery; cannabis use disorder was the most common substance use disorder (60.8%). Maternal and neonatal morbidity were assessed using admissions to hospitals and emergency departments; outcomes were measured up to 42 days postpartum for mothers and 28 days of age for infants, with 1337 and 4129 cases identified, respectively. All-cause maternal and infant mortality were recorded within 1 year postpartum, with infant mortality defined as death within 12 months following birth. TAKEAWAY: Regional factors were associated with increased morbidity; residing in Vancouver Coastal area increased the odds of maternal morbidity by 35% compared with the provincial average (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.35; P < .01), while residing in Interior or Vancouver Island was associated with 16% and 10% higher odds of neonatal morbidity (aOR, 1.16 and aOR, 1.10; P < .01 for both), respectively. Opioid use disorder, stimulant use disorder, multifetal pregnancy, and hypertensive disorder during pregnancy were independently associated with higher odds of maternal and neonatal morbidity. Receiving five or more visits for prenatal care and delivering vaginally were linked to reduced odds of maternal and neonatal morbidity. The odds of maternal mortality increased by 11% annually (P = .04), with over half of maternal deaths being drug-related (52%). Attending five or more visits for prenatal care was associated with reduced odds of both maternal mortality (aOR, 0.48; P = .04) and infant mortality (aOR, 0.23; P < .01). IN PRACTICE: 'During heightened drug toxicity and mortality, enhancing PSU [perinatal substance use] care and health surveillance should be prioritized to inform strategies to remove barriers in access to care related to resources, stigma, and lack of understanding of PSU to address health disparities among birthing people who use substances and their infants,' the authors of the study wrote. SOURCE: This study was led by Micah Piske, MSc, of the Health Economic Research Unit at the Centre for Advancing Health Outcomes, St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was published online on July 10, 2025, in Pediatrics. LIMITATIONS: The findings may have been influenced by factors not captured in the analysis. Differences in coding systems for measures of morbidity may have affected the comparability of data. The results may not be generalizable to populations outside of British Columbia. DISCLOSURES: This study was supported by the Health Canada Substance Use and Addictions Program. No relevant conflicts of interest were disclosed by the authors. This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.
South China Morning Post
16-07-2025
- South China Morning Post
14 Indonesian babies trafficked to Singapore? Jakarta's envoy has his doubts
Jakarta's ambassador to Singapore has expressed scepticism about the existence of an Indonesian baby trafficking syndicate following the arrest of 12 people for smuggling infants to the city state by West Java police. Suryopratomo claimed he had not received any reports about the alleged trafficking ring when contacted by Tempo news magazine on Tuesday. 'I don't know,' he said in a brief text message. 'What is the evidence of baby sales to Singapore? I cannot comment on something unclear.' He did not believe it was likely that such a syndicate could operate. Citing Singapore's strict immigration checks, he said it was almost impossible to smuggle infants into the country. 'It seems unlikely. Entering Singapore is difficult,' he said. Firstly, proper papers are needed. 'If the baby uses an Indonesian passport, how would they bring them to Singapore?' Suryopratomo queried. The process of getting a Singapore passport was tedious and any of the passports the police had confiscated were unlikely to be genuine, he said. Furthermore, even if the passports were valid, airport authorities would ask after the infants' parents. '[Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoint Authority] will surely ask the perpetrators: 'Why is the baby not taken back home?'' he said. Earlier on Tuesday, West Java's regional police announced that they had uncovered an international baby trafficking ring, which had been operating since 2023. 'It is estimated that about 24 babies have been traded,' the police's public relations head Hendra Rochmawan said in a written statement. The case came to light after a parent reported an alleged baby kidnapping to local police. Investigations led them to a suspect who admitted to trading the infants, according to an Agence France-Presse report.
Malay Mail
16-07-2025
- Malay Mail
Indonesian police bust baby trafficking ring that sent infants to Singapore
BANDUNG, July 16 — Indonesian authorities have detained 12 suspects after uncovering an alleged baby trafficking ring that sent more than a dozen infants to Singapore, a police official told AFP yesterday. The case was discovered after a parent reported an alleged baby kidnapping to police, which led them to a suspect who admitted to trading 24 infants, said West Java police's director of general criminal investigation, Surawan, who goes by one name. The perpetrators are accused of moving the babies to Pontianak city on Borneo island and then sending more than a dozen of them onwards to Singapore, said the official. 'Based on documents, 14 (babies) were sent to Singapore,' he said. 'The age range is clearly under one year old, with some three months old, five months old, and six months old.' Authorities managed to rescue five babies in Pontianak and one in Tangerang, a city near the Indonesian capital Jakarta. They also arrested a dozen suspects across Jakarta, Pontianak and the Javan city of Bandung. 'They are a syndicate, a baby trafficking syndicate. They each have their own roles,' said Surawan. Some of the suspects were allegedly tasked with finding the babies, while others cared for them, sheltered them or prepared civil registration documents, such as family cards and passports. The syndicate had been in operation since 2023, Surawan said, based on suspect statements. Police said they sought out 'parents or mothers who refuse to care for their children' in return for money. Surawan said the parent who reported a kidnapping 'actually had an agreement' with the smugglers before their child's birth, but reported them when they did not receive payment afterwards. Human trafficking is also a domestic problem across South-east Asia's biggest economy, a sprawling nation of more than 17,000 islands. In one of the worst cases in recent years, at least 57 people were found caged on a palm oil plantation in North Sumatra in 2022. — AFP
