Baby died after night nanny gave Piriton

[examworries2026]

Just read this story and really shocked.

Is it normal practice for night nannies to give 8 week old babies antihistamines to sedate them? Appalling.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czd77edm8g1o

It should appear on an enhanced DBS.

Most people are trustworthy.

You will at some point have to have someone other than yourself care for your child. You need to be rational about the risks involved in that.

Otherwise what exactly - you are the only person who can ever be left alone with your baby ever?

Times they keep a changing - and on they will go.

When my children were small there were lots of sedative medicines available and frequently used/ recommended amongst mother and baby groups - medised, phenergan, chlorpheniramine (piriton).

These were deemed far safer than their mother's suggestions of rubbing whisky on sore gums, or alcohol for sedative purposes (as mentioned in gripe water).

Earlier than this laudanum (morphine) in 'soothing syrups' was very frequently used.

The desperation of exhausted parents/caregivers to get a child to sleep is as old as time.

These days we have some technological solutions (heartbeat toys/ white noise) that can be helpful.

She hasn't been convicted of anything so it can't show up on a DBS. Someone thinking you probably did something doesn't show up on a DBS thankfully!

I agree, l thought it was the poster's baby by the title and actually caught my breath thinking how awful, l only opened it as a mum who has lost a child and wanted to offer support. I don't generally read anything like this for obvious reasons.

My mum gave my sister whisky (1990s). She didn't sleep through til she was nearly 3 and I think my mum was desperate.

This is so sad. I could never even imagined having a stranger look after my baby at that age, different having help in the day when you're around but I don't know how those parents could sleep all night.

I've worked as a maternity nurse in London and other places in the past (about thirty years ago), usually for the first six weeks post birth. I absolutely did not ever administer any medication to any baby - if they were unsettled after they'd been fed, it was my job to walk the floor with them in the early hours. Drugging them never crossed my mind.

Oh my god! I hadn't seen that.
Ruth Asare, head of Ruthie Maternity Services, said she had no medical qualifications and had only a first aid certificate and a Level 2 diploma in post-natal care gained from from a three-day course and a six-month coursework project.

Mind boggles.

"the baby was unsettled and fussy at night"
Good heavens isn't that most 8 week old.babies.
I know it's exhausting but tiny babies are suppose to wake during the night. Why would a trained nanny think it's appropriately to sedate them?
It's tragic

An enhanced DBS should include any relevant information held on local police records which is much more than just convictions.

unlock.org.uk/advice/local-police-information-2/

It's says they don't know.
But in any case an 8 week old baby shouldn't be sedated at night time

Agree with this totally.

Palming off a young baby.

I remember it too.

When our kids were little we were invited to a dinner party and told to bring the kids along. We assumed it was going to be a big family dinner with all the kids so we got our kids all dressed up and headed over there.

It was about 4 or 5 families. When we got there, the host said all the rooms had been set up on the top floor with roll out beds for the kids. Told the kids to get ready for bed and then lined them up ready for their “sleepy medicine”.

The plan was to essentially drug all the kids to sleep so the parents could have a fun night.

We scooped up our kids, made our excuses, and never socialised with those people again.

Even the term "nurse" isn't protected. People advertise themselves as nursery nurses and night nurses and have no qualifications. Even our local hospital employ "nursery nurses" in the NICU and they have childcare qualifications but are not a registered nurse. it;s confusing for parents and should be stopped.

Soundly apparently as they obviously didn't give a fuck about the baby, palmed off to a stranger.

Omg yes! Looking at what was in the old colic remedies I’m like well yes, that would
absolutely work! Apparently Queen Victoria loved cocaine wine - wild times!

Personally i find it wild anyone would employ a night nanny.

But how very sad for the family.

I'm pretty sure in years gone by Calpol actually had a sedative element to it, but they had to remove it as so many parents abused it to get their kids to sleep.

I can almost understand a desperate exhausted parent using something like this to try and get some sleep, but a night nanny who is literally being paid to stay awake, it's a disgrace.

Tbh I'm one and done as I couldn't imagine ever putting myself through a newborn ever again, but if I was determined to have another kid I would consider a night nanny once per week or so just for one guaranteed good night's sleep. Desperate times, desperate measures.

Giving a baby under 1 Piriton (without GP sign off) is negligent.
Whether or not it CAUSED the death is for the courts to assess.
A night nanny owes a duty of care and has breached that duty and it is reasonably foreseeable that giving medication not advised for under 1s could cause harm.

Typical case of go to a supposed privileged house and not do a proper investigation. When a baby dies in a nursery or under the care of a professional of course it needs a full investigation.

No, it didn’t. It says:

‘Expert opinion accepted by the court was that this drug could possibly have caused or contributed to the baby's death, but it could not be found that it probably did.’

I spent a lot of time agonising about using piriton even on medical advice whilst my toddler is being investigated for asthma/allergies when he has a bad cough.

I only used it after it was clearly specifically warranted by his symptoms. MIL casually mentioned that she always dosed up BIL when travelling with car sickness medicine "because it made him sleep".

But also in hospital it was definitely not safe sleep guidelines on the wards. It was hot as all hell in the postnatal ward, well over the recommended 20 degrees, and all the babies were double swaddled in folded blankets by the nurses. Both were against the safe sleep guidance we were given by the hospital itself!

Which given we then had to co-sleep and were given grief by the midwives was very annoying.

I think it was more of a case of they couldn't determine whether Piriton was the cause.

The reason for the Coroner's Prevention of Future Deaths report was to highlight the complete lack of urgent action or investigation by the Police.

It should appear in "relevant police information".