> There is obviously more to this than is being reported. If social workers=
> =20
> have become involved (as is reported) then there are obviously 
> multiple=20=
>
> problems with this mother (and maybe other family members).


This is not necessarily true. I have worked for the equivalent of the US 
child protective services here in Canada, and I have seen cases with some 
similarity to this one. I remember one case from several years ago where a 
breastfed baby was diagnosed with cancer and the doctors recommended 
immediate treatment. The mother and father asked for some time to get a 
second opinion. The doctor then went to child protective services to have 
the child made a ward of the province in order to begin the treatment 
immediately. The parents - who were, by the way, excellent parents and this 
was even stipulated to by everyone involved - lost custody of this child 
simply because they wanted a second opinion. I do know all the details of 
this case so I can confirm that there were no other - and certainly not 
"multiple" - problems.

It is my experience that some doctors (not all) feel very strongly that 
their medical advice and recommendations should be followed, and that when 
parents don't follow that advice, they are putting their children at risk 
and that it is therefore quite reasonable to call in social workers. They 
may feel this way even if the parents are otherwise wonderful parents. It is 
also my experience that social workers, and often judges as well, tend to be 
very impressed by doctors and their medical expertise. If a doctor says this 
baby must have a certain treatment or surgery or else he will die, the 
social workers usually accept that without any further investigation and 
conclude that the parents who want to investigate further or consider other 
options are simply putting the baby at risk.

I don't know all the details of this particular case, obviously. But we 
certainly can't conclude that "there are obviously multiple problems" simply 
because social workers and child protective services have become involved.

Teresa Pitman 

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