Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Sunday, December 6, 2015
Friday, December 4, 2015
'Government is not an adequate parent': Children's advocate calls for better care options
Darlene MacDonald released a special report, Permanency Beyond Foster Care, on Wednesday, recommending the province assess whether its rules and policies meet priorities set out by the United Nations on the rights of children and indigenous people. (Childrens' Advocate)
Manitoba's children's advocate is urging the province to better protect almost 6,000 kids in permanent care by finding "loving family environments."
Darlene MacDonald released a special report, Permanency Beyond Foster Care, on Wednesday, recommending the province assess whether its rules and policies meet priorities set out by the United Nations on the rights of children and indigenous people.
"If we want the child welfare system to operate in the best interests of children, youth and families, leaving a child or youth to languish in care as a permanent ward cannot be acceptable," MacDonald said.
"We need to see the system get more creative and more assertively seek out extended family and community members who can provide stable, loving, long-term options. Involving family and community is the only way in which the long-term needs of children will be met. The government is not an adequate parent."
Overall, the current system lacks stability and permanency, MacDonald said.
"It's concerning because children just stay in care. There are babies who come into the system who do not get secure homes, whether that's through custom adoption or other opportunities with relatives."
In 2014, there were 10,293 children in care in Manitoba and of those, 5,848 (57 per cent) were in care as permanent wards, the Office of the Children's Advocate reports.
Children have a right to grow up in a continuous family environment in which they can flourish, the report states.
"When it is not possible to return children to their immediate family, the government must fulfil its obligations to work in a child's best interest and actively build solutions that provide loving family environments to children in care," it states.
"Developing extended family and community or kin placements must be made a priority for how the child welfare system operates."
First Nations get more say in child welfare under proposed Manitoba law
The report also calls on the government to support custom adoptions that reflect indigenous values for First Nations children.
MacDonald declined to outline what custom adoption should look like, saying she would like to see indigenous community leadership set forth that vision.
"What we've seen is kids want a connection to the community. Kids want to know who their parents are and they want stability," she said.
"We need to work with them so it happens in a safe manner."
Just before the children's advocate's report was released, the province announced it is pursuing legislative changes to the Child and Family Services Act that would see more traditional methods of care put in place for indigenous foster children.
'They're damaging children' - Family courts criticised for failing to enforce their own orders
A general view of The Ministry of Justice building
Joanna Morris / Thursday 3 December 2015 / News
THE family courts are damaging children and vulnerable families by failing to enforce their own orders, says a Darlington woman.
The woman, who did not want to be named, and her former partner were ordered to attend mediation sessions and complete parenting courses after a custody battle went to the family courts.
She completed the requirements laid out in the court order but thus far, she said her ex-husband has failed to comply.
If she wants to ensure he obeys the order, she has been told she must take him back to court for another hearing at her own cost.
With the cost of hearings often exceeding £200 and legal aid increasingly difficult to access, the woman cannot afford to pursue the matter – a predicament she believes may face many vulnerable and low income families across the UK.
Accusing the legal system of lacking the teeth to ensure people comply with orders issued, she said the onus should not be on people like her to foot the bill for others’ failings.
She said: “This is not just about me or my children, it must affect hundreds.
“Social services can’t help because it’s not a safeguarding issue and the courts say we need to go back for another hearing, which costs £276.
“I did everything the courts asked me to but he’s refusing, even though these courses would improve life for our children – nobody’s a perfect parent.
“In order to make sure my kids are looked after properly, I have to pay to take him back to court.
“The courts are issuing these orders but not following through with them and it’s costing people a lot of money.
“Like many, I can’t afford a solicitor, court costs or to take the time out of work to do this.
“It means people are getting away with this kind of thing and it’s a situation that will only get worse.”
She added: “A lot of people split up this time of year and they don’t know what to do for the best – they need to know the pitfalls.
“They need to know even if they go to court, they can’t force people to comply with orders.
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“This issue needs to be addressed because the system is letting children down.”
A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: "The family court must always act with the best interests of children concerned. If any conditions are breached the court can consider appropriate enforcement action."
Scandal fallout: Oregon pulls foster kids from another provider
Oregon officials have stopped placing foster children with a Clackamas County agency that landed on a state "radar list" of troubled providers, the Department of Human Services said Thursday — more fallout from accusations the department did little to stop neglect by a Portland provider.
The provider, Youth Villages Oregon, is a local branch of a national organization. It was led, until this winter, by Oregon Health Authority director Lynne Saxton. A statement from a Department of Human Services spokesman didn't say why the provider was put on the radar list or how many children were affected.
The department plans to release a letter Friday detailing problems and threatening Youth Villages with the loss of its state license.
Connie Mills, a spokeswoman in Youth Villages' main office in Tennessee, told The Oregonian/OregonLive "we disagree with some of [the department's] conclusions." But she acknowledged that Oregon officials had "asked us to hold off on admissions to our residential campus program for the time being." The provider works with children facing serious behavioral and emotional issues.
Mills also shed some light on some of Oregon's concerns, saying they involved training and supervision issues.
"They have some questions about this program and we are actively addressing those while we work with [the department] on a corrective action plan," she said in a statement. "Some of the things we're doing include enhancing supervision of youth by significantly increasing highly skilled and trained staffing, as well as conducting additional trainings and evaluating other areas in which we can make improvements."
Youth Villages, formerly known as ChristieCare, is one of two providers facing sanctions after Department of Human Services officials this month reviewed seven providers on the most recent radar list.
The other one is Scotts Valley School in Douglas County, which treats behavioral problems and accepts private clients from across the country. Scotts Valley has been on the list longer than any other provider and is expected to receive a letter Monday, officials said. It does not treat any state-paid clients.
The Department of Human Services released information about the list and the results of its review in response to requests from three media outlets, including The Oregonian/OregonLive.
Those requests came during a tense legislative hearing last month on how the Department of Human Services deals with troubled providers. The hearing followed reports that top officials continued to send children to a Northeast Portland foster care provider despite knowing about serious financial issues and abuse accusations.
The state Department of Justice has filed suit against that provider, Give Us This Day, accusing its operator of misspending $2 million in state money to pay for personal expenses such as cosmetic surgery and vacations.
Give Us This Day spent 28 months on the radar list, officials testified at last month's hearing. The list, issued every few months by the department's licensing arm, looks at factors including media attention, the volume and severity of complaints, and chronic noncompliance. The licensing office has three staffers in charge of tracking 203 child-care providers.
"The document became known as the 'radar list,' but it was never intended to be more than an advisory about licensed facilities that someone thought should be added or removed to ensure that DHS executives were informed if asked," department spokesman Gene Evans wrote. "It was never a 'watch list' of locations where immediate action was needed or recommended — it was only an internal advisory document."
Gov. Kate Brown responded to the Give Us This Day scandal last month by replacing the Department of Human Services' interim director and announcing an independent investigation of the state's child welfare system.
Her choice to lead the department, state administrator Clyde Saiki, told lawmakers last month that human services managers lacked a central mechanism for spotting troubled providers. Evans said Saiki ordered the review that led to Thursday's announcement.
Evans said Saiki has "established an ongoing review process" to make sure managers meet and track concerns involving child-care facilities.
"This cross-agency team and regular review is one early outcome of the governor's charge to improve oversight of the child foster care system," Evans wrote.
Sen. Sara Gelser, D-Corvallis, who convened last month's hearing, is working up legislation to toughen licensing requirements and financial rules, and to give regulators the power to suspend a provider's license over abuse claims and other safety violations.
Gelser also has proposed changing how the department processes abuse and neglect allegations. Last year, more than half of complaints were ruled closed during an initial screening, in part because state law strictly limits investigations, usually to cases involving serious injury or an ongoing threat.
Gelser wants to set a lower threshold that would include threats, neglect through the denial of food or medicine, financial fraud and lesser injuries that don't leave a child near death.
— Denis C. Theriault
dtheriault@oregonian.com
503-221-8430; @TheriaultPDX
DHS investigating 7 foster homes
Children have been removed from one foster home as part of a DHS investigation ordered by Gov. Kate Brown and increased media scrutiny of the agency.
Children at the Clackamas County foster care provider Youth Villages have been removed from the facility, according to information released Thursday from the Department of Human Services.
That information became public following DHS's fulfillment of a public records request by the Statesman Journal and other media for the DHS "radar list" of foster care providers.
The list is periodically delivered to DHS executives to alert them about providers that have a high number of complaints or high severity of complaints, a record of chronic noncompliance with rules, or anticipated media attention.
Scotts Valley School, a therapeutic boarding school in Yoncalla, has been on the list for at least 36 months, the longest of any provider. The school does not have state-placed children, but is a private organization accepting payment to house and treat troubled children. Scotts Valley School did not return phone calls Thursday.
Along with Scotts Valley School and Youth Villages, other facilities on the "radar list" are: Chehalem Youth and Family Services, of Newberg, Eastern Oregon Academy, of Burns, Inn Home for Boys, of Portland, Kairos, of Grants Pass, and Youth Progress, of Portland.
The list released Thursday did not include details of any allegations against the organizations. DHS spokesman Gene Evans declined to comment on why those facilities are on the list, although he said Youth Villages and Scotts Valley School are the most serious cases.
"We're not releasing detailed information on those yet, because that's all being redacted," Evans said.
Connie Mills, public relations manager at Youth Villages, a national organization with several campuses, said in a statement that Youth Villages is improving its programming and disagrees with some of DHS's conclusions, but is "extremely concerned about this" and "taking these issues very seriously."
"We believe in being transparent about our work and constantly enhancing our program, so we are working closely and openly with DHS," the statement said.
DHS is working with the Department of Justice to issue "intent to revoke" letters notifying Youth Villages and Scotts Valley School of corrective actions they must take to stay licensed. Those letters are expected to be publicly released following DOJ review and will include detailed information about the allegations.
The existence of the radar list was first reported after journalists learned of it at a public hearing last month. DHS officials testified to the Interim Committee On Human Services and Early Childhood about how they are working to fix problems with the agency's child care system, and mentioned the list.
Gov. Kate Brown ordered an independent review of DHS following media reports that now-defunct foster care provider Give Us This Day had allegedly pocketed upwards of $2 million meant for childcare and provided substandard living conditions. Despite knowing of abuse and mismanagement, DHS officials did not revoke Give Us This Day's license.
Following those revelations, Brown demoted acting-DHS Director Jerry Waybrant and appointed State Chief Operating Officer Clyde Saiki as interim DHS director. Saiki said he plans a "deep" investigation of DHS.
A committee has also been created to guide the investigation, which is ongoing.
gfriedman2@statesmanjournal.com, (503) 399-6653, on Twitter @gordonrfriedman or Facebook.com/gordonrfriedman
Children at the Clackamas County foster care provider Youth Villages have been removed from the facility, according to information released Thursday from the Department of Human Services.
That information became public following DHS's fulfillment of a public records request by the Statesman Journal and other media for the DHS "radar list" of foster care providers.
The list is periodically delivered to DHS executives to alert them about providers that have a high number of complaints or high severity of complaints, a record of chronic noncompliance with rules, or anticipated media attention.
Scotts Valley School, a therapeutic boarding school in Yoncalla, has been on the list for at least 36 months, the longest of any provider. The school does not have state-placed children, but is a private organization accepting payment to house and treat troubled children. Scotts Valley School did not return phone calls Thursday.
Along with Scotts Valley School and Youth Villages, other facilities on the "radar list" are: Chehalem Youth and Family Services, of Newberg, Eastern Oregon Academy, of Burns, Inn Home for Boys, of Portland, Kairos, of Grants Pass, and Youth Progress, of Portland.
The list released Thursday did not include details of any allegations against the organizations. DHS spokesman Gene Evans declined to comment on why those facilities are on the list, although he said Youth Villages and Scotts Valley School are the most serious cases.
"We're not releasing detailed information on those yet, because that's all being redacted," Evans said.
Connie Mills, public relations manager at Youth Villages, a national organization with several campuses, said in a statement that Youth Villages is improving its programming and disagrees with some of DHS's conclusions, but is "extremely concerned about this" and "taking these issues very seriously."
"We believe in being transparent about our work and constantly enhancing our program, so we are working closely and openly with DHS," the statement said.
DHS is working with the Department of Justice to issue "intent to revoke" letters notifying Youth Villages and Scotts Valley School of corrective actions they must take to stay licensed. Those letters are expected to be publicly released following DOJ review and will include detailed information about the allegations.
The existence of the radar list was first reported after journalists learned of it at a public hearing last month. DHS officials testified to the Interim Committee On Human Services and Early Childhood about how they are working to fix problems with the agency's child care system, and mentioned the list.
Gov. Kate Brown ordered an independent review of DHS following media reports that now-defunct foster care provider Give Us This Day had allegedly pocketed upwards of $2 million meant for childcare and provided substandard living conditions. Despite knowing of abuse and mismanagement, DHS officials did not revoke Give Us This Day's license.
Following those revelations, Brown demoted acting-DHS Director Jerry Waybrant and appointed State Chief Operating Officer Clyde Saiki as interim DHS director. Saiki said he plans a "deep" investigation of DHS.
A committee has also been created to guide the investigation, which is ongoing.
gfriedman2@statesmanjournal.com, (503) 399-6653, on Twitter @gordonrfriedman or Facebook.com/gordonrfriedman
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
How the State of Oregon Kidnapped Our Son
Unexplained Injury
On November 8th, 2011 we noticed my son was feeling some pain and was running a low grade fever (100.2° F). I was concerned so I called an advice nurse that my wife's insurance provided. The nurse on the line was very polite and recommended that we go to the ER because my son was only five weeks old. Her concern was that at that age a fever could mean something was seriously wrong and we needed to have it examined.
The First Hospital
We went to the local hospital in our home town to see a doctor there. Upon arrival the triage nurse performed her introductory evaluation, noting that there were "no bruises, swelling, or any external abnormalities" while also noting that "all four extremities are moving strongly and equally."
We were brought to a room in the ER where a doctor performed a number of tests. This included a hip flexing check and saw that the legs were pulled up tightly towards the abdomen. He explained that sometimes when babies have abdominal pain they'll pull their legs in tightly. While the doctor manipulated my son's legs he let out a very loud scream, quite unlike we had heard before. This was very different than the experience with the triage nurse just minutes before.
The doctor ordered an x-ray to view my son's abdomen and hips. The doctor's belief was that their could possible be an obstruction in my son's intestines causing the pain.
The X-Ray Technician
My wife needed to return home at this point. In our haste to get to the ER we had forgotten to bring a change of clothes and diapers, and while there our son soiled his outfit. I stayed and the x-ray technician came in to take a number of images. At one point while we were moving my son the x-ray technician looked at me in a confused way and asked if the doctor had mentioned anything about my son's left leg. I replied that he hadn't other than a possible abdominal issue.
The technician left after taking his initial x-rays, and came back half an hour later. He was told to take specific pictures of the leg. He then came in again one more time after another half an hour to take a clearer picture of the leg. My wife had returned at this point and the Doctor came in and told us that our son had a spiral femur fracture (We later learned that it was actually an oblique fracture and not a spiral). The doctor informed us that as protocol he had to notify the authorities and an investigation would take place. (It was also noted that he had gaseous distention from the x-rays)
The First Police Office
The First Hospital
We went to the local hospital in our home town to see a doctor there. Upon arrival the triage nurse performed her introductory evaluation, noting that there were "no bruises, swelling, or any external abnormalities" while also noting that "all four extremities are moving strongly and equally."
We were brought to a room in the ER where a doctor performed a number of tests. This included a hip flexing check and saw that the legs were pulled up tightly towards the abdomen. He explained that sometimes when babies have abdominal pain they'll pull their legs in tightly. While the doctor manipulated my son's legs he let out a very loud scream, quite unlike we had heard before. This was very different than the experience with the triage nurse just minutes before.
The doctor ordered an x-ray to view my son's abdomen and hips. The doctor's belief was that their could possible be an obstruction in my son's intestines causing the pain.
The X-Ray Technician
My wife needed to return home at this point. In our haste to get to the ER we had forgotten to bring a change of clothes and diapers, and while there our son soiled his outfit. I stayed and the x-ray technician came in to take a number of images. At one point while we were moving my son the x-ray technician looked at me in a confused way and asked if the doctor had mentioned anything about my son's left leg. I replied that he hadn't other than a possible abdominal issue.
The technician left after taking his initial x-rays, and came back half an hour later. He was told to take specific pictures of the leg. He then came in again one more time after another half an hour to take a clearer picture of the leg. My wife had returned at this point and the Doctor came in and told us that our son had a spiral femur fracture (We later learned that it was actually an oblique fracture and not a spiral). The doctor informed us that as protocol he had to notify the authorities and an investigation would take place. (It was also noted that he had gaseous distention from the x-rays)
The First Police Office
We spoke to the police officer that came to see us and explained that there hadn't been anything traumatic that happened. Nobody dropped him, no one fell with him, nothing happened. While we spoke to the police officer we mentioned we came in because our son was having abdominal pain, thought to be bad gas, and a low grade fever. We mentioned that he had no bruises (which was confirmed by a nurse that was in the room at the time) and we told him we had no idea there was a fracture. Our son hadn't screamed in pain as he did until the doctor manipulated his leg.
My son was only mildly more fussy than normal prior to our visit, and as young parents we thought that as long as he was eating he was okay. The night before we also noticed a fever and we went to the store so he could have baby Tylenol and Gripe Water (Natural medicine to reduce gas). This seemed to work as it lowered his temp and calmed him down.
The Children's Hospital
My son was only mildly more fussy than normal prior to our visit, and as young parents we thought that as long as he was eating he was okay. The night before we also noticed a fever and we went to the store so he could have baby Tylenol and Gripe Water (Natural medicine to reduce gas). This seemed to work as it lowered his temp and calmed him down.
The Children's Hospital
The Children's Hospital was notified. Their EMT crew and a pediatrician arrived and wrapped up my son's leg. My son was transferred to the Children's Hospital in an ambulance with my wife. I had to run home and pick up some things for my son, and then I drove out there myself.
While in the ambulance, my wife was able to hear a pediatrician and an EMT discuss that they thought this was clearly abuse and that it was only protocol to bring a parent. When they arrived at the Children's Hospital a complete trauma workup was performed on my son. It was noted again that there were no bruises, swelling, lesions, abrasions, and that my son was content beyond his leg. It was noted that my son had extra cartilage on his skull but it was not trauma related, and I remember wondering what that meant. My son showed no symptoms of being in any pain or distress, though he did have a low grade fever.
My wife had been advised to ask the ER doctor what could cause such injuries in an infant. She was rudely told that "It was either child abuse or you're lying (about there being no accident)."
My son was sent to have a head CT done immediately. His results came back perfectly normal. There was no bleeding on the brain, no hemorrhaging, no skull fractures, or signs of trauma. My wife requested that a new doctor be placed with our son after the encounter with the previous doctor, and was given an advanced resident to look over our son. A full blood workup was run, including a spinal tap, to check for infection because of his low grade fever. My son, minus the blood drawing, remained content, fed well, and soothed easily. It was very hard for the doctors to draw blood from our son, and it took quite a lot of time for them to finally get anything, causing my son great pain in the process. On the spinal tap, one of the residents missed the spinal fluid and hit a vein, causing blood to become mixed in with the spinal fluid. They also took new x-rays while in the Children's Hospital ER. Even after taking the blood, a number of tests were lost or not valid.
The Inpatient Room
While in the ambulance, my wife was able to hear a pediatrician and an EMT discuss that they thought this was clearly abuse and that it was only protocol to bring a parent. When they arrived at the Children's Hospital a complete trauma workup was performed on my son. It was noted again that there were no bruises, swelling, lesions, abrasions, and that my son was content beyond his leg. It was noted that my son had extra cartilage on his skull but it was not trauma related, and I remember wondering what that meant. My son showed no symptoms of being in any pain or distress, though he did have a low grade fever.
My wife had been advised to ask the ER doctor what could cause such injuries in an infant. She was rudely told that "It was either child abuse or you're lying (about there being no accident)."
My son was sent to have a head CT done immediately. His results came back perfectly normal. There was no bleeding on the brain, no hemorrhaging, no skull fractures, or signs of trauma. My wife requested that a new doctor be placed with our son after the encounter with the previous doctor, and was given an advanced resident to look over our son. A full blood workup was run, including a spinal tap, to check for infection because of his low grade fever. My son, minus the blood drawing, remained content, fed well, and soothed easily. It was very hard for the doctors to draw blood from our son, and it took quite a lot of time for them to finally get anything, causing my son great pain in the process. On the spinal tap, one of the residents missed the spinal fluid and hit a vein, causing blood to become mixed in with the spinal fluid. They also took new x-rays while in the Children's Hospital ER. Even after taking the blood, a number of tests were lost or not valid.
The Inpatient Room
We were eventually moved to an inpatient room. They tried to draw more blood during the night, but they didn't tell us what the blood was being drawn for. We were also informed not to feed our son throughout the night so they could reset the bone, and he cried through the night in hunger pains. We followed the directions we were given. Despite all this, he wasn't given any medication because he was still soothing himself. The room was very cold at night, yet my son maintained a high temperature and was even sweating. None of the nurses adjusted the temperature at night, nor did they tell us how.
In the morning a new nurse came in and said my wife could feed our son. They took a full skeletal survey in the morning where they noted a number of fractures. These inculded:
My son had seen many different doctors in this time, all noting that he look healthy an happy. My son had been in for a 1 week check, 2 week check, at about 3 1/2 weeks he was circumcised, he had visited the hospital twice because he was jaundice, and my wife's midwife had also seen him during one of her post birth visits the day before we went to the hospital.
In the morning a new nurse came in and said my wife could feed our son. They took a full skeletal survey in the morning where they noted a number of fractures. These inculded:
- An acute left femoral diaphysis angulated oblique fracture,
- Age-indeterminate bilateral distal femoral,
- Probable left and right proximal tibia metaphyseal corner fractures,
- Probable age-indeterminate left proximal humeral metaphyseal corner fracture,
- Probable partially healed proximal right tibia and fibula fracture,
- And healing bilateral rib fractures (Probably three).
My son had seen many different doctors in this time, all noting that he look healthy an happy. My son had been in for a 1 week check, 2 week check, at about 3 1/2 weeks he was circumcised, he had visited the hospital twice because he was jaundice, and my wife's midwife had also seen him during one of her post birth visits the day before we went to the hospital.
They attempted to draw more blood, and continued to be unsuccessful, taking a full second day to gather the blood needed to send out for the Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) test and a few other tests regarding bone health. He was still on no medication until they decided to put an IV in his head where they used morphine. They took an abdominal CT because my son had high liver enzymes, but his CT came back perfectly normal. He was put into a Pavlik harness to help heal his femur fracture.
The State Intervenes
A Child Protective Services (CPS) worker, a detective, and a police captain interviewed me, my wife, and my wife's parents. They agreed that everything we have said had been consistent. There hasn't been any trauma, and certainly no outward signs abuse. The police never filed criminal charges.
The State Intervenes
A Child Protective Services (CPS) worker, a detective, and a police captain interviewed me, my wife, and my wife's parents. They agreed that everything we have said had been consistent. There hasn't been any trauma, and certainly no outward signs abuse. The police never filed criminal charges.
We had to appear in court for an emergency hearing as requested by CPS. I had already obtained a lawyer but my wife hadn't had time yet. During the hearing the judge seemed to want to give us both of our children back. But CPS boldly lied and said there was liver damage and stated that all fractures were fact, rather than possibilities. The judge reluctantly had our son put into a "Medical" foster home, while allowing us to keep our daughter (As long as we were in sight and sound of Linda's parents with our daughter).
At 3 Months
At 3 Months
CPS continued to hold our son, and was attacking our parenting skills and the well being of both of our children. We had 3 1-hour visits a week with our son, and during that last month we discovered that our son now had an umbilical hernia (which may have been developing while he was still with us). We asked CPS to take our son to see a doctor, but they informed us they had another appointment set up for his two month check and will have it looked at than.
We have since discovered that our son does have low calcium, low vitamin D, high alkaline phosphatase. We have looked into many different possibilities, including OI, Rickets, Temporary Brittle Bone Disease (TBBD), and other diseases that could have caused this. The OI test came back negative, but there are other options, but at this time it was very difficult to have our son tested.
Back in the Womb
My wife had a rough pregnancy because of his size. We discovered that she has a retroverted uterus. This made our son's birth even tougher. He was born at 41 5/7 weeks by induction with pitocin. My son had severe shoulder dystocia during birth, and had an initial APGAR score of 3, taking a full minute to even breath. During the later stages of pregnancy my son was unable to move much, but certainly was noticeable due to his large size. My son only moved at night when my wife was able to lay flat, especially during the third trimester. His birth weight was 9lbs 7oz and 21 1/2 inches.
The Judicial Hearing
We have since discovered that our son does have low calcium, low vitamin D, high alkaline phosphatase. We have looked into many different possibilities, including OI, Rickets, Temporary Brittle Bone Disease (TBBD), and other diseases that could have caused this. The OI test came back negative, but there are other options, but at this time it was very difficult to have our son tested.
Back in the Womb
My wife had a rough pregnancy because of his size. We discovered that she has a retroverted uterus. This made our son's birth even tougher. He was born at 41 5/7 weeks by induction with pitocin. My son had severe shoulder dystocia during birth, and had an initial APGAR score of 3, taking a full minute to even breath. During the later stages of pregnancy my son was unable to move much, but certainly was noticeable due to his large size. My son only moved at night when my wife was able to lay flat, especially during the third trimester. His birth weight was 9lbs 7oz and 21 1/2 inches.
The Judicial Hearing
We started the Judicial Hearing Process on January 5th, 2011. The hearings were held on the 5th, 6th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 18th. One of the worst problems with this process is that it is held in the Juvenile Courts, and rather than using "Beyond a reasonable doubt" they use "Preponderance of Evidence" which refers to balancing the evidence (50/50), and whichever side is over the 50% mark wins the case.
We clearly should have had more than enough evidence to prove that we had not abused our son. Firstly, it was made clear that the hospital had lost blood tests, including a very important vitamin D, phosphorus, ionized calcium, and the PTH tests, all vital for diagnosing Rickets. They also noted elevated liver enzymes related to bone breaks which were elevated even higher after our son was in foster care, after declining to a normal level at the hospital.
The Expert and the Villain
We had hired Dr. David Ayoub to testify about what he saw from the x-ray and CT images. He testified that he could see from the radiological evidence that our son had neonatal rickets. Dr. Ayoub even had images taken directly from My son's X-rays and CT scans to show these signs.
The state provided numerous medical witnesses, and each of these witnesses, except Dr. Villain (A Child abuse Expert who has been certified by American Board of Pediatrics, Child Abuse Pediatrics since 2009), had admitted that if our son had a medical condition of bone fragility that it could explain his fractures. It was also noted that our son had no bleeding on the brain, no subdural bleeding, no retinal hemorrhaging, no bruising, no swelling, no internal organ damage, no brain damage, no cuts or lesions, and no tissue damage. The only thing noted were the unexplained bone fractures without local tissue trauma.
It was even noted in court that there was very likely a new rib fracture after our son was placed in foster care. There was even a physician's assistant who noted that if our son did have bone fragility he himself could have accidentally broken our son's ribs during a routine well baby check.
The ER doctor who saw our son when we brought him to the hospital still can't give a clear answer about whether or not he broke our son's femur, and when asked on the stand said "I don't believe I did." rather than a simple yes or no. The pediatrician who is currently seeing our son was even confused why they were calling this abuse when there clearly were other things that needed to be looked at first, and recommended that our son see and endocrinologist and geneticist.
There were two doctors who testified that the obvious fact that all of the normal signs of abuse were missing meant it was unlikely to be abuse when evaluating the differential diagnosis.
The State recalled two of their medical witnesses to discredit Dr. Ayoub's work simply because his current study hadn't been published in a peer reviewed journal yet. Dr. Villain (who had never actually seen our son, nor viewed his full medical history) claimed that he didn't care if our son had a medical condition. He (in a very belligerent attitude)believed that this was abuse anyways, and would not be convinced otherwise.
The Judge's Ruling
So the Judge erred on the side of caution and adjudicated my wife and I of abusing our son. We we able to keep our daughter home with us, because she was in perfect health. He even stated that we should bring new medical evidence to him should we have any.
We tried to have CPS take our son to specialist to evaluate him, and the judge even order them to do it. This never happened. We fought for our innocence, and after 17 month we got our son back. The verdict hadn't changed, but the judge had decided that we were trustworthy enough to have our son back.
The new evidence
In 2013 we finally had the opportunity to have our son evaluated by a endocrinologist at the very same children's hospital. They thought the situation was very odd. While they found no endocrine problems, they suggest that our son be evaluated for Ehlers-Danlos with a geneticist.
We finally were able to see the very busy geneticist in 2014, and they said that our son clearly has Ehlers-Danlos type-III (Hypermobility). We were told that his was very likely the reason our son was injured without a traumatic accident. We thought that it was great to finally know what we as a family were dealing with. The syndrome isn't life threatening for our son, but it isn't a simple disorder either. He deals with fatigue and soreness frequently.
We haven't been able to return to court, because it is very difficult to find an attorney who wants to reopen finished cases.
We didn't abuse our son, and they shouldn't be able to take our son like this without reasonable cause.
We clearly should have had more than enough evidence to prove that we had not abused our son. Firstly, it was made clear that the hospital had lost blood tests, including a very important vitamin D, phosphorus, ionized calcium, and the PTH tests, all vital for diagnosing Rickets. They also noted elevated liver enzymes related to bone breaks which were elevated even higher after our son was in foster care, after declining to a normal level at the hospital.
The Expert and the Villain
We had hired Dr. David Ayoub to testify about what he saw from the x-ray and CT images. He testified that he could see from the radiological evidence that our son had neonatal rickets. Dr. Ayoub even had images taken directly from My son's X-rays and CT scans to show these signs.
The state provided numerous medical witnesses, and each of these witnesses, except Dr. Villain (A Child abuse Expert who has been certified by American Board of Pediatrics, Child Abuse Pediatrics since 2009), had admitted that if our son had a medical condition of bone fragility that it could explain his fractures. It was also noted that our son had no bleeding on the brain, no subdural bleeding, no retinal hemorrhaging, no bruising, no swelling, no internal organ damage, no brain damage, no cuts or lesions, and no tissue damage. The only thing noted were the unexplained bone fractures without local tissue trauma.
It was even noted in court that there was very likely a new rib fracture after our son was placed in foster care. There was even a physician's assistant who noted that if our son did have bone fragility he himself could have accidentally broken our son's ribs during a routine well baby check.
The ER doctor who saw our son when we brought him to the hospital still can't give a clear answer about whether or not he broke our son's femur, and when asked on the stand said "I don't believe I did." rather than a simple yes or no. The pediatrician who is currently seeing our son was even confused why they were calling this abuse when there clearly were other things that needed to be looked at first, and recommended that our son see and endocrinologist and geneticist.
There were two doctors who testified that the obvious fact that all of the normal signs of abuse were missing meant it was unlikely to be abuse when evaluating the differential diagnosis.
The State recalled two of their medical witnesses to discredit Dr. Ayoub's work simply because his current study hadn't been published in a peer reviewed journal yet. Dr. Villain (who had never actually seen our son, nor viewed his full medical history) claimed that he didn't care if our son had a medical condition. He (in a very belligerent attitude)believed that this was abuse anyways, and would not be convinced otherwise.
The Judge's Ruling
So the Judge erred on the side of caution and adjudicated my wife and I of abusing our son. We we able to keep our daughter home with us, because she was in perfect health. He even stated that we should bring new medical evidence to him should we have any.
We tried to have CPS take our son to specialist to evaluate him, and the judge even order them to do it. This never happened. We fought for our innocence, and after 17 month we got our son back. The verdict hadn't changed, but the judge had decided that we were trustworthy enough to have our son back.
The new evidence
In 2013 we finally had the opportunity to have our son evaluated by a endocrinologist at the very same children's hospital. They thought the situation was very odd. While they found no endocrine problems, they suggest that our son be evaluated for Ehlers-Danlos with a geneticist.
We finally were able to see the very busy geneticist in 2014, and they said that our son clearly has Ehlers-Danlos type-III (Hypermobility). We were told that his was very likely the reason our son was injured without a traumatic accident. We thought that it was great to finally know what we as a family were dealing with. The syndrome isn't life threatening for our son, but it isn't a simple disorder either. He deals with fatigue and soreness frequently.
We haven't been able to return to court, because it is very difficult to find an attorney who wants to reopen finished cases.
We didn't abuse our son, and they shouldn't be able to take our son like this without reasonable cause.
Our story has been passed on, and we hope people continue to share it. So please repost and spread the word about this huge injustice to all your friends and family. This isn't about just our family anymore. This scenario is happening over and over again all across the country and internationally. So please share this story, it may help a family be saved.
Thursday, September 3, 2015
Thank You
Hello Friends!
I'm a little late to share this, but I wanted to say Thank You for your support. We recently just hit 100,000 visitors! WOW! I never imagined that we would receive this much attention.
Since This Started
It has been quite a while since we started this blog. Our son had been taken away, and he was gone for 17 months. It was a hard battle, but eventually we got our son back and our family whole again. It wasn't without much pain, and we're still recovering 2 years after he came home. Our son and daughter never leave each other's sides. Whether this is due to their close age or the fact that she had to visit her baby brother at a DHS office, who knows for sure. But they love each other very much.
Both of our children have since been diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Type III, which is a hypermobility branch of the disorder. My son has more severe symptoms, often having tiny pinpoint bruises and joint pain, especially in his feet. My daughter seems to have a less severe case, though she did just suffer an elbow injury that was made worse due to her naturally bendy elbows.
We're finally starting to break away from the damage caused by the judicial system. For the longest time we were stuck living with my in-laws. We were stuck there for 4 years! As you can imagine, tension builds up after a while. But now we finally bought our own house and can start raising our kids.
Still Seeking Action
Again, I want to Thank You all for your support. The battle isn't over as we are still on the "child abuse registry" that Oregon DHS keeps. We are trying to work with lawyers and public officials to change this law since it does violate our due process rights. We know this battle is hard, maybe one of the most difficult ones in life. Keep strong, and I hope that we can support you as much as you have supported us.
Daniel Dossey
I'm a little late to share this, but I wanted to say Thank You for your support. We recently just hit 100,000 visitors! WOW! I never imagined that we would receive this much attention.
Since This Started
It has been quite a while since we started this blog. Our son had been taken away, and he was gone for 17 months. It was a hard battle, but eventually we got our son back and our family whole again. It wasn't without much pain, and we're still recovering 2 years after he came home. Our son and daughter never leave each other's sides. Whether this is due to their close age or the fact that she had to visit her baby brother at a DHS office, who knows for sure. But they love each other very much.
Both of our children have since been diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Type III, which is a hypermobility branch of the disorder. My son has more severe symptoms, often having tiny pinpoint bruises and joint pain, especially in his feet. My daughter seems to have a less severe case, though she did just suffer an elbow injury that was made worse due to her naturally bendy elbows.
We're finally starting to break away from the damage caused by the judicial system. For the longest time we were stuck living with my in-laws. We were stuck there for 4 years! As you can imagine, tension builds up after a while. But now we finally bought our own house and can start raising our kids.
Still Seeking Action
Again, I want to Thank You all for your support. The battle isn't over as we are still on the "child abuse registry" that Oregon DHS keeps. We are trying to work with lawyers and public officials to change this law since it does violate our due process rights. We know this battle is hard, maybe one of the most difficult ones in life. Keep strong, and I hope that we can support you as much as you have supported us.
Daniel Dossey
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Today's Hero: Dr. Michael F. Holick, Ph.D., M.D.
Michael F. Holick, Ph.D., M.D.
Professor of Medicine, Physiology and Biophysics at Boston University School of Medicine
Medical School: University of Wisconsin, Madison
Residency: Massachusetts General Hospital
Fellowship/Post-residency: Massachusetts General Hospital
Residency: Massachusetts General Hospital
Fellowship/Post-residency: Massachusetts General Hospital
Areas of Interest: Vitamin D, Calcium, Bone Metabolism, Photobiology of Vitamin D, Osteoporosis
Accomplishments:
• Increased awareness in the pediatric and medical communities regarding vitamin D defi ciency
pandemic, and its role in causing not only metabolic bone disease, and osteoporosis in adults, but
increasing risk of children and adults developing common deadly cancers, autoimmune diseases,
including type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis and heart disease.
• Recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the American Skin Associations Psoriasis
Research Achievement Award, the American College of Nutrition Award, the Robert H Herman
Memorial Award in Clinical Nutrition from the American Society for Clinical Nutrition, the Annual
General Clinical Research Centers Program Award for Excellence in Clinical Research and the
Linus Pauling Functional Medicine Award from the Institute for Functional Medicine.
pandemic, and its role in causing not only metabolic bone disease, and osteoporosis in adults, but
increasing risk of children and adults developing common deadly cancers, autoimmune diseases,
including type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis and heart disease.
• Recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the American Skin Associations Psoriasis
Research Achievement Award, the American College of Nutrition Award, the Robert H Herman
Memorial Award in Clinical Nutrition from the American Society for Clinical Nutrition, the Annual
General Clinical Research Centers Program Award for Excellence in Clinical Research and the
Linus Pauling Functional Medicine Award from the Institute for Functional Medicine.
http://www.bumc.bu.edu/endo/faculty/holick/
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