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We have to get a checkup for kids new to the system within a week. But even still, the exams I've witnessed for my placements would never have picked up whatever this little girl had going on. Unless she had her pupils dilating unevenly as an indicator (which I'd think a foster parent would probably notice in the first couple of days), the doctors we've seen wouldn't have found anything wrong with her either. So the fact that she didn't see a doc right away doesn't convince me that that would definitely have saved her life. (Although I agree, it could have.... And either way, it's horribly sad that she was ever in this situation to begin with.)
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While I agree that from what we know so far, it's unlikely that a doctor visit would have caught anything, I will be interested to see what the Sheriff's procedural investigation reveals -- are the CPS officers regularly missing the checkup or was this a one officer error?
If I had to guess, I would say they frequently miss those deadlines, and it finally caught up with them. Just because I'm in Pinellas County and they brought me a 9 month old baby girl one night. They said that they decided to "skip" the exam because the child had recently been seen by her regular pediatrician. It was very late and I had to work the next morning, so a transporter came to pick her up the next morning to take her to the day care they use until the children are placed (I was a temporary emergency-type placement-I couldn't take her long term). she was still considered in shelter status. Well I got a call from placement that day at work saying she was vomitting repeatedly at school and needed to be picked up. So I took her to the after hours clinic that night to have her checked out-she also had full-blown lice! Great! I hadn't even noticed since she came so late the night before. As a rule now, I will always take any kids that are brought to me straight out of the home to the doctor ASAP. I took a look at the previous doctors visits notes in her blue book that night, and lo and behold the doctors report said she had nits in her hair. That was two weeks prior to when I got her. Live and learn!
Omygosh, poor sweet baby.
One of our severely addicted drug babies didn't get seen by a doctor until few weeks after placement, and not because of lack of trying on my part. I must have called ten different doctor's offices and they were all booked three months in advanced and the ones that weren't didn't accept Medicaid, of course. I finally found one doctor's office and made an appointment for 9 in the morning, arrived on time, and sat in the waiting room waiting with two other kids! until 1130!! When I asked and they told me they were behind and it would be at least another hour until I was seen, I left.
I was seriously about to take her to an ER to get her seen, when I had the supervisor call a newer clinic that got really good reviews and, because the supervisor called, they were willing to see the child the next morning. Now I have a good relationship with that dctr's office and I love love love them.
I hear that my experience is pretty standard for where I'm from. I have a great dctr's office now, so have no more issues, but this is another area that need work.
We have a nurse at the county intake who does a prelim check and then have to see doctor for well visit within two weeks. Same for dentist but it takes two months to get onto the dental clinic here so we get a break on that.
I agree with pp, sounds like an aneurism. Poor child and families. The article heading is a little bad, makes it like something happened by foster family.
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I may have this wrong, but I believe there is a difference between the health screening and the initial Ped visit. I think here in Texas the children are taken to an er for a screening upon removal, then the foster parents are asked to get them a checkup within 15-30 days.
Most of my placements took place late at night, despite having gotten the call early in the day, due to how long the er took.
We are required to do the 72 hour thing here too... since I usually take newborns from the hospital, I simply swing by my doc's office on the way home and they work us in.
My biggest fear and panic in the world is that something will happen to one of my little people. Not just that the bios could have done something, but that life could happen and a random weirdness happen.
That article breaks my heart.
littlemonkeysmommy
We are required to do the 72 hour thing here too...
After a surprising amount of googling, I found it's part of Florida's administrative code -- IOW, it is the requirement everywhere in the state.
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