Sickening revelation seven-week-old baby died with ‘cocktail’ of drugs in its system while co-sleeping with substance-abusing mum and stepfather

A cocktail of illegal drugs was found in the system of a seven-week-old baby who died after hospital staff repeatedly raised concerns about his welfare to authorities.

The child, known as Baby B, cannot be named for legal reasons and was born to a drug-using mother who staff at Melbourne’s Royal Women’s Hospital suspected was still using drugs while she was 20 weeks pregnant .

Staff put an “unborn alert” on him with Child Protective Services and had recently launched an investigation when the baby died while sleeping with his mother and his stepfather, who they had ordered to stay away in December 2020.

Coroner Audrey Jamieson found this week that the child died of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) category 2, reported The Herald Sun.

This is used when a baby has died in his sleep from an unknown cause and when suffocation or mechanical asphyxiation cannot be confirmed or ruled out.

Coroner Jamieson said a hair sample test showed the baby had more than half a dozen drugs in his system that had been ingested through breast milk, formula or ‘environmental contamination’.

These were methylamphetamine, tramadol, codeine, morphine, methadone, oxycodone, diazepam, 6-monoacstylmorphine and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol.

Since the first report of his mother’s suspected drug use during pregnancy in June 2020, numerous concerns had been raised to authorities about the child’s welfare.

The child was born in October and the following month Child Protection, part of the Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, was told that the boy’s mother had verbally threatened his older brother or sister in a supermarket while she was possibly on the receiving end of the drug. drugs.

A few days later, Baby B was seen with a black eye that his mother claimed was the result of an accident involving his older sibling.

That same month, staff at a hospital where the stepfather was admitted after he fell from a utility pole while drunk reported that she had yelled and cursed at her children and neglected their needs while visiting him.

Child Protective Services, in consultation with the Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency, Lakidjeka, carried out a risk assessment and found the child was not at risk in his mother’s care, pending a full investigation and with no incidents involving drugs or violence.

In late November, another report was made to Child Protective Services, alleging that both children had been neglected, that the home environment was in shambles and that the mother did not have proper parenting skills.

The child had more than half a dozen medications in his system, including oxycodone, morphine and methylamphetamine, which a coroner said he ingested through breastfeeding, bottle-feeding or environmental contamination (stock image)

Just over two weeks later, on December 5, Baby B was found unconscious after sleeping between his mother and stepfather.

A full child protection investigation was underway at the time.

Coroner Jamieson found the baby’s sleeping position ‘potentially dangerous’.

“These risks are exacerbated if the parent(s) use alcohol and/or other drugs,” Judge Jamieson said.