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Abandoned Baby Drop Box?

post #1 of 11
4/30/10 at 8:15am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Starting Monday, the Angel's Cradle program will be available to allow desperate mothers to abandon their babies anonymously.
...
The cradle will be located next to the hospital's emergency-room entrance. Mothers will be able to enter a private alcove where they can leave their child inside a bassinet. An alarm will sound 30 seconds after the mother closes the door, alerting a nurse to retrieve the baby.
Links:
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/P...990/story.html
http://www.theprovince.com/news/Ange...858/story.html
http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/l...ritishColumbia
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canad.../13766521.html

This story is from Vancouver but was fairly big news in Toronto where doctors have spoken out about it saying that it is not wanted in Toronto (admittedly, Vancouver has more babies abandoned than Toronto according to reports)

There are no security cameras to be in the area where the baby is abandoned and the anonimity of the mother is guaranteed - no follow up by police

Doctors here have brought up a few issues, apart from the obvious one that there are plenty of adoption agencies in Canada
- the questions required on adoption paperwork regarding health history could be lifesaving to the child
- there is a cooling off policy with adoption cases, the same is not true for this program (they say the mother can contact social services, but how would they prove it was their baby etc)
- it could be used in kidnapping cases with no immediate followup by police to find that it matches a missing child (especially when police may consider it a domestic dispute and think one parent has taken the child)
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post #2 of 11
4/30/10 at 9:09am
We have a program here where a mother can drop off a baby to any hospital, fire station, or police station with no questions asked. I think it's a great idea- since maybe those women who would normally dump a baby in the trash will feel they have another option. Of course recently a local woman still managed to murder her newborn by throwing the baby away in the trash- instead of taking the baby to one of numerous drop off spots- so apparently it doesn't always work.
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post #3 of 11
4/30/10 at 9:45am
Yes, we have the same law here in New York State. When a baby is found in a trash container, it just breaks my heart when they could have left it safely in a designated area.

Sadly, this is what the world has come to.
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post #4 of 11
4/30/10 at 10:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by farleyv View Post
Yes, we have the same law here in New York State. When a baby is found in a trash container, it just breaks my heart when they could have left it safely in a designated area.

Sadly, this is what the world has come to.
It is sad that anyone feels the need to abandon a baby. Yes there are a lot of adoption agencies and other resources available. Unfortunately these women feel those won't work for them. I would much rather see a baby put in an angel's cradle than a garbage can left to die.
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post #5 of 11
4/30/10 at 1:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by icklemiss21 View Post
- the questions required on adoption paperwork regarding health history could be lifesaving to the child
- there is a cooling off policy with adoption cases, the same is not true for this program (they say the mother can contact social services, but how would they prove it was their baby etc)
- it could be used in kidnapping cases with no immediate followup by police to find that it matches a missing child (especially when police may consider it a domestic dispute and think one parent has taken the child)
The same program exists in the state I'm living in now, and I have to wonder about the above objections. The babies left in these "cradles" (called baby hatches here) are hours or at most days old and usually born outside hospitals, so what kind of health history could even be given, other than the mother's/parents', which often isn't meaningful at all?

A pelvic exam of the woman claiming to be the mother, coupled with DNA testing, should more than suffice to prove parenthood should the mother change her mind.

The idea of kidnappers disposing of a baby in one of these "cradles" sounds extremely far-fetched, unless it were after ransom were paid, and the case would then make headlines everywhere, and surely hospital staff or the police would make the possible connection? They're not cretins. A remorseful baby snatcher might use the "cradle", but again there would be a lot of coverage of the case.
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post #6 of 11
4/30/10 at 1:51pm
I ahve heard about these drop boxes, it is like getting rid of a bit of rubbish in my eyes but then again it is safer than just them dumping the poor baby somewhere that they may die. I can't even begin to really say what I think as I would be here all night, it makes me so sad. x
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post #7 of 11
4/30/10 at 7:17pm
I find these to be a good idea, just because the easiest other option is to dump the baby in a dumpster or trash bag and leave it to die. This way, they have a chance at life and care. I dont know about any program like that in South Carolina, but I do think I've heard of being able to leave a baby at a hospital no questions asked.
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post #8 of 11
4/30/10 at 7:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mbjerkness View Post
It is sad that anyone feels the need to abandon a baby. Yes there are a lot of adoption agencies and other resources available. Unfortunately these women feel those won't work for them. I would much rather see a baby put in an angel's cradle than a garbage can left to die.
If the choice is between certain death in a dumpster, and a chance at life and proper care, even without knowing your heritage, the latter seems like a no-brainer.
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post #9 of 11
5/1/10 at 3:09pm
We have something like that here as well, although not as technological as that. There's a sign at any fire station or hospital where someone can drop off a baby with no questions asked. We've had it here for quite a few years with some of the same potential issues brought up by the nay-sayers when it was passed.

I've seen a few stories on it since then and what they said was that it hasn't been used nearly as much as people would have had you think when it was debated. A few times a year over the entire state. But for those few babies it has meant everything. Life. On top of that then number of baby "dumps" has gone down by much more than the number of babies who have been dropped.

I guess having the choice has led more new mothers to make the right decision.
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post #10 of 11
5/1/10 at 10:17pm
Sad but necessary. Much better than dumping them somewhere dangerous. There is a "safe haven" law here that states that anyone can leave a baby up to 3 months old at a hospital, police station, fire station, etc. without being charged with abadonment.

When Nebraska first passed their safe haven law, they didn't specify an age limit. So frustrated parents were dumping their unruly teenagers all over the place. And one poor overwhelmed widower who dropped off his 10 kids at a hospital (fortunately after they were told, the family stepped in to help). They have since closed the loophole and I think their age limit is 3 months as well.
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post #11 of 11
5/1/10 at 10:56pm
Where I grew up, babies can also be dropped off at fire stations for that purpose; when I was a teenager, a girl got into the news for leaving her baby next to a coffee shop in a hospital (she came forward later; I forget what eventually happened with them). Sad for it to come to that, but since it is needed, it's good that it's there. If someone for whatever reason just can't handle raising a kid or adopting it out the usual way...we can't get much right in this world, but we can find someone to take care of a few babies.
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