A MUM “poisoned her son by putting faeces in his IV drip” as he asked her “why are you doing this to me?” a court has heard.
The youngster, 9, was a patient at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead in Sydney, Australia, in September 2014 and analysis of his blood revealed he had tested positive for the bacteria E. coli.
The mum-of-four, who cannot be named, is currently facing a special hearing at Downing Centre District Court, and has pleaded not guilty to using poison to endanger a life.
While the boy, whose identity is protected, was in hospital he became extremely unwell and began to experience severe fever and delirium.
Nurse Lindie Brown, who was working at a unit manager at the ward where the boy was a patient, told the court he became “very unwell” during one of her shifts.
His temperature shot up to 40C and he began experiencing rigors, or shaking.
He also complained of pains in his back, stomach and head and asked for medicine to “take the pain away”, the court heard.
Brown said she then heard the boy ask his mum “why she was doing this to him”.
He then said words to the effect of “you could have put something in my cannula when I was asleep”, Brown said.
The following day he again asked his mum why she was “doing this to me,” Brown told the court.
“She [the mother] said, ‘What?'” Brown said.
“And he said, ‘Poisoning me’.”
Brown told the court she made a “mental note” of the incidents and contacted child protection services via an email.
Defence barrister Pauline David told the court on Thursday there were a number of possible explanations of how the boy became infected.
When Brown was cross-examined by David she admitted she did not make a written note about the boy’s claims because it was not her duty to do so.
Brown also said the boy was in a high state of stress at the time she claims to have heard him question his mum, the New Zealand Herald reports.
She also agreed with David that the boy had displayed “considerable” behavioural problems during his stay in hospital, swore at nurses and was “very demanding of his mother”.
“It was a battle wasn’t it, the whole way?” David asked.
“It was,” Brown replied.
Kristina White, another nurse on duty during the same shift, told the court she heard the boy say something similar while “looking at” his mother.
“What have you done to my cannula this time?” White testified the boy said.
White said the mother replied with words to the effect of: “Why would you say that? That makes me upset when you say those things.”
When David asked the witness if it was possible she misheard the boy and he actually said “don’t you dare put anything in my cannula?” White replied “possibly yes”.
White added she had discussed the situation with her colleague “as soon as we left the room” where her superior made it clear she was concerned about the boy’s alleged comments.
The hearing before Judge Justin Smith continues.
