I was just watching out local news and there was a feature on babies being abandoned in hospitals in Oregon and Washington after a baby was abandoned in a Vancouver Wa Hospital. (short brief: http://www.katu.com/stories/86970.html ). The infant is fine thank goodness!!!
I didn't know this but I guess it is legal to abandon your baby in a hospital or fire station within a certain period of time in the two states. Washington state it is 72 hours after birth, Oregon it is 30 days. I had no idea about that law!!! So this woman will not get punishment or repremand for doing this. The article did say that if there were signs of abuse, that a parent then is held responsible and will face an abuse charge.
They said that the child will be a toddler before she would be able for adoption because of the process of trying to find a family member who may want her (the woman left a fake name so it is hard to find her or family)...and other things the state must do.
That seems so sad for this infant, however...maybe living with the mother would be far worse?
Do you think it should remain legal to abandon your infant at a hospital or fire station?
It's interesting that many of the quotes from that website (I'm not retyping such an offensive name) deal with teenage mothers only. In my experience, these are usually drug babies.
i 100% agree the hospital or the firestation than the dumperster. and reading back on teenage girls, it makes me think about my own children. i know when you got children that are dating and they decided to have sex out of no where.
i don't know about you out there but it makes me sick when teenagers are not being taught about protection. and parents that let their kids have boy and girl sleep over.
Although noone wants to think that someone would abandon thier baby, I think the option for these women and young girls to leave the baby at a safe place gives the baby a chance! Who knows what the situation is with these mothers and why they feel that they cannot keep thier child, but I have to give them some credit for leaving the baby in a safe place and giving them a chance at a greater life than keeping them under bad circumstances or killing the child.
I also think it should be legal. I do however, feel badly for these kids when they grow up and have no family medical history. I'm a firm beliver that adopted children have every right to their adoption records. When I lived in Pittsburgh a few years back, there was a newborn girl flung out of a moving car onto the side of the highway(still had the umbilical cord attached).:angryfire Thank God, this little girl lived and she ended up getting adopted. Ultimately, I think the safe haven laws, while not the ideal, are a good thing.
south carolina’s law, effective june 6, 2000, is formally titled the “safe haven for abandoned babies act.” it is also known as “daniel’s law,” named for an infant boy who survived after being buried in an xxxxxxxxx county landfill soon after his birth.
daniel’s law allows infants under the age of 30 days to be left in the physical custody of an employee at a hospital or hospital outpatient facility by a parent or person acting on behalf of the parent without disclosing his or her identity.
This is a full system where they know that child is there immediately. This is great. This, yes is lifesaving and a God send. :redpinkhe This I do agree with and believe it should be more available in other states as well.
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
Thanks for all the posts, I too am in favor of it for obvious reasons!
The thing that got me thinking was if women would use this as a form of birth control...get pregant knowing you can just drop them off at any firestation or hospital and be done with it. I hope that doesn't happen , but the pros far outweigh any cons in my oppinion.
A news poll on the matter showed that many people are in favor of it like we are!
However, there were people out there that expressed upset at the amount of money being spent on legal costs, detective time searching for the family's, and the cost of raising a child through the foster systems... They also expressed that they fear abandoned babies will become a norm for any scared mother. Some also bashed our Childrens Services Division for not being able to take care of our foster children and children in danger to begin with let alone an infant (I must admit our CSD has gotten into hot water too often, and are feared for their tactics...so much that people don't call them even when they should!)
BUT..they all would express that this was a better situation than death alone in a trash can or toliet!
I am for it..and I think the concerns that the public told can be worked on!
Thanks for all your posts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't think there's any worry that this would be used as birth control. In the first place, the birth isn't controlled... The women are getting pregnant and giving birth. In the second place, woman already have the option of giving their babies up when they're born. When a baby is abandoned like this, there are forces at work that have nothing to do with decisions that were made at the time of conception.
Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
I just wanted to put in my regarding father's/grandparent's rights. The day is coming where every one who accesses the health system in this country will have their very own medical record (MR) number that will follow them from their first encounter to their death--very much like their social security number. That MR will eventually include one's DNA profile. Establishing and even finding parents is eventually going to be merely a question of the legal right and/or authority to search and access the information in those MR databases. Even now, DNA profiles are being cataloged on every prisoner going into many of the penal systems and it has helped catch perpetrators of unsolved crimes. It's only a matter of time before DNA profiling of every citizen becomes commonplace. We may not live to see it, but it is coming. I don't intend for this discussion to take a turn into personal rights or confidentiality of personal information, but to point out one of the positive, practical applications that this merging of science and computer technology is going to provide. Oh, how much I wish I could be around in 100 years to see some of these things in action! While many problems will be solved, other issues and concerns will emerge. But, that is the way of all things in a free society, it seems.
I think every state should make it legal. I would rather a baby be left in a hosptial than in a dumpster dead... like it was some kind piece of trash. Hopefully, the baby will grow up to be a normal citizen.
I don't think there's any worry that this would be used as birth control. In the first place, the birth isn't controlled... The women are getting pregnant and giving birth. In the second place, woman already have the option of giving their babies up when they're born. When a baby is abandoned like this, there are forces at work that have nothing to do with decisions that were made at the time of conception.
Very well said, mercy.
The other issue that seems to be most troubling regarding legal abandonment is that of the father's rights. While I don't mean to discount the father's rights in determining his child's future, I can't help but wonder just how far we need to go to locate a man who has been so uninvolved during the previous 9 months as to be unaware of the pregnancy and birth of a child. I know that it not always the case, but in many of the circumstances I've dealt with (young, unmarried girls considering adoption) the father was present only for conception. I'm not saying that totally negates the father's rights, but I also don't think they should supercede the child's rights to a loving, adopted home, or cause an undue delay in finding such a home for an innocent baby.
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
Very well said, mercy.
The other issue that seems to be most troubling regarding legal abandonment is that of the father's rights. While I don't mean to discount the father's rights in determining his child's future, I can't help but wonder just how far we need to go to locate a man who has been so uninvolved during the previous 9 months as to be unaware of the pregnancy and birth of a child. I know that it not always the case, but in many of the circumstances I've dealt with (young, unmarried girls considering adoption) the father was present only for conception. I'm not saying that totally negates the father's rights, but I also don't think they should supercede the child's rights to a loving, adopted home, or cause an undue delay in finding such a home for an innocent baby.
I have to agree. I don't want to participate in a potential ''you're bashing Dads'' debate could arise from saying this, but how many stories do we have to hear about 3 or 4 or 5 year olds that are living happily with their adoptive families when their biological father, who apparently didn't have a long enough relationship with the mother to have been around even just a few months later when pregnancy would've been apparent, deciding their rights are more important than their child's happiness and well being? It is especially galling when these men have other children out of wedlock that aren't supporting financially. Why do parents' rights count more than children's rights in this country? I never could figure that one out!
, but the pros far outweigh any cons in my oppinion.
regarding father's/grandparent's rights. The day is coming where every one who accesses the health system in this country will have their very own medical record (MR) number that will follow them from their first encounter to their death--very much like their social security number. That MR will eventually include one's DNA profile. Establishing and even finding parents is eventually going to be merely a question of the legal right and/or authority to search and access the information in those MR databases. Even now, DNA profiles are being cataloged on every prisoner going into many of the penal systems and it has helped catch perpetrators of unsolved crimes. It's only a matter of time before DNA profiling of every citizen becomes commonplace. We may not live to see it, but it is coming. I don't intend for this discussion to take a turn into personal rights or confidentiality of personal information, but to point out one of the positive, practical applications that this merging of science and computer technology is going to provide. Oh, how much I wish I could be around in 100 years to see some of these things in action! While many problems will be solved, other issues and concerns will emerge. But, that is the way of all things in a free society, it seems.
fergus51
6,620 Posts
It's interesting that many of the quotes from that website (I'm not retyping such an offensive name) deal with teenage mothers only. In my experience, these are usually drug babies.