In tears - Health visitor has reported me to social services as my DD has a mongolian blue spot!

[pinkmagic1]

My DS was born with his little bum covered in mongolian blue spots. The health visitor explained them to me and noted them in his red book to avoid future problems.
This morning a health visitor came to weigh my 4 week old DD. She asked me if DD had any birth marks so I mentioned the very small mongolian blue spot at the base of her spine. She then said she had to inform social services as it wasn't spotted at birth. I was discharged 6 hours after delivery so the baby doctor did not check DD, only the GP latter and in my opinion he didn't really do it that well.
The health visitor has just called to say social services have now been informed, I am in floods of tears and don't know where to turn.

you poor thing
cannot believe the ignorance
complain!

Pinkmagic, I am utterly appalled at your treatment and completely disgusted by the level of ignorance of these uneducated people. I concur with what others have said. If possible, change your HV to someone who is more medically and culturally enlightened.

Am appalled at this. Tomorrow get an urgent appt with your GP to get the MBS identified so you are forearmed.
Am just so gobsmacked at the ignorance I am out of words

Here is a website that sensibly suggests taking a photograph so that you can show it is a semi-permanent mbs, rather than a bruise to avoid problems in the future...

MBS

Bollocks is it an 'oriental' thing. All of mine had them (DDs one on the base of her spine has only just faded, she's 3) We've had the interrogation from uninformed health professionals too (registrar in A&E insisted on getting a paed down to check DS2s, although we had gone there with severe D&V, and we live in ruddy London!). It's down to skin colour as far as I'm aware, olive skin is prone, so mediterranian, asian, oriental, mixed race etc It's ridiculous that this problem keeps coming up.

Not only an oriental thing, most latinoamerican have them too.

Just to update you all. I called the G.P in tears this morning and asked for an emergency appointment. As it was social services had already been in touch with him! I went to see him and he was just shocked that in this day and age this happens and said that if a health visitor dosn't know the difference between a mongolian blue spot and a bruise they should be re-trained. He also said that they are just so common he no longer routinely notes them. He has apologised for the upset that my family and I have been through and is calling the health visitors superior and suggested I put in a complaint which I am doing. In fact he was absolutely fuming!
No one can understand the hurt this has caused unless they have been there. To have someone think you have harmed your own baby just hurts beyond belief. I just hope my situation means that the health visitor recieves the training she so desperately needs and it stops another family having to go through what we have just been.

I'm so sorry that you are having to endure this Pinkmagic. It should not be happening in this day and age. Even where I live (predominantly white area and I'm black), the HV knew about Mongolian blue spots and was giving me a lesson on how it was common amongst black and asian babies. Your HV needs to update her skills and quickly.

I have been there Pinkmagic. Not a MBS and I won't burden you with the details, but I was accused by a HV and a locum of starving my little boy when he was four months old. In our case SS were never involved but we were "summoned" to see a paediatrician and it too weeks for them to find out what was actually wrong with him.

There are unfortunately some stupid heavy-handed arrogant b@stards in the Health Service (as there are anywhere, I suppose) and this sort of cock-up does cause unimaginable grief and stress.

I do hope you will be able to put this behind you and get on with enjoying your baby's first Christmas.

pinkmagic this thread almost made me cry - I'm so sorry to hear about what you've been through. If someone had reported me to social services when my DS was that tiny I would have been devastated. I'm glad you're complaining - hopefully it will save another family going through this.

Just so u know anyone with a non white mix in their background can have MBS.
My toddler has several Mongolian blue spots and some days after a hard days playing injuring himself I think if we ever go to casualty! Especially when he flew out of the front door split his lip bruised his ear and had finger tip bruising to his arms where I'd tried to cath him all considerd non accidental injury.
Some health professionals can be very heavy handed unfortunately my sister was in a clinic and heard the health visitor questioning a non white woman with not very good English about the "bruise" on the baby's bottom and was able to show her child's "bruise".The same woman also told her very loudly that her child had one leg longer than the other and would be left with a limp! We have put in a complaint.
I cant believe people dont know about MBS we are pretty multicultural these days and as part of child protection u are also taught the pitfalls of diagnosing non accidental injuries.
I am sorry for how u have been made to feel but I realise health professionals have a duty to protect children( and infortunately we still see terrible case of abuse on the news)but Mongolian blue spot is so easily distinguishable it's difficult not to identify it once seen.

so sorry you're gone through this PM1 - sounds like you have a good gp - focus on what they said.

Hi guys - I've also been thru all this with my DS (now 7). I've never heard anyone talk about it before so this is amazing. We are both 'white - english' ?? what should I say? When he was born he was rushed off by the paeds for other reasons than the mbs but can you believe that when his dad went to find him to see what was going on they wouldn't believe he was the dad - they were looking for someone black bcs of the mbs's. Then - it gets better, when he was about 18 months we moved and I had one of those checks by a 'HV' who was completely crazy amd started going on about how there's black in all of us (not that it would be a problem) and how even the Queen has been proven to be descended from black Africans....
I was dumbstruck but eventually showed her the door. My belief is never trust a health visitor - I'm sorry if there are good ones, but with my 2 and moving around I must have been through about 10 or so..

my dd3 has MBS on her bottom. me and dh are white/english. but my mums side of the family descend from romanies. dd3 also has very very dark eyes and catches the sun easily (doesnt burn, but even with factor 50 gets a tan)

Thankyou for everyones kind words. The G.P. was excellent and has assured me that no one can do anything and that they would have to go through him first. I have taken an official letter of complaint down to the clinic where all the health visitors are based so I am now just waiting for an apology.

So sorry to hear you had to go through this. Emotions run high enough as a new mum, you don't need any pressure to add to what you're already going through. Where do you live? The health visitor seems a bit ignorant. I hope they apologise to you.

You don't get the red book until you have your first home visit from the HV.

Why has it been reported to social services???

Just read through the whole thread and I am pleased your GP knows what they are doing and has taken your upset seriously.

I live in Nottingham and they give you the red book shortly after birth at the hospital here. Just wondering today actually if it is time to chase up my complaint, I took it down the clinic on 15th December.

Nottingham is pretty multicultural. Bit surprised that she didn't recognise a mongolian blue spot.

My DS's Mongolian Blue Spot (quite large covering the top of his bum) wasn't present at birth. My mum, who is a Health Visitor, spotted it when bathing him a few weeks later and advised me to bring it to the attention of my Health Visitor as cases like those mentioned in this thread are not unknown.
Anyway, the next time I saw my HV I brightly announced, "I think he has a Mongolian Blue Spot."
I was amazed when HV said, "Oh I've never seen one of those before. Can I have a look?"
Lesson of the day is to never assume a health professional knows everything.

Two related incidents in hospital after giving birth:
Several doctors were brought in to assess possible abuse of DS because his penis and testes were bruised. I had to point out that his grandmother is black, they weren't bruised - just brown!
Much worrying and wringing of hands about jaundiced DS. He wasn't jaundiced, they were expecting to see white skin and DS just isn't white.

I think we're not quite a multicultural society yet.

They told me my dd was juandiced, didn't even bother to ask if her father was dark skinned - he's Peruvian and has a sort of golden tanned colour. They also recommended I lie her on the floor beside the window with no clothes on for an hour each day to help the 'juandice' - in December with no proper heating!!!
She's still a lovely rosy colour at 4.5 mths...