Auckland High Court grants temporary custody to sick baby . Parents kept him from performing life-saving heart surgery because potential blood donors may be vaccinated against COVID-19 .
The Auckland High Court has granted temporary custody to a sick baby whose parents kept him from performing life-saving heart surgery because potential blood donors may be vaccinated against COVID-19, allowing an urgent surgery to correct a heart disease called pulmonary valve stenosis.The parents of Baby W refused the surgery and sought a court order to force the operation on him.However, the court ruled that the surgery was in the child's best interest and placed the child under the custody of the court from the date of the order to the time of his surgery and post-operative recovery.Justice Ian Gault dismissed the parents' appeal for unvaccinated blood and concluded with health officials that the baby's survival was actually dependent on the application.
He noted however that New Zealand's blood service had given evidence of a significant rise in potential blood recipients seeking blood from nonvaccinated donors or seeking for direct donation in the last six months.Similar incidents have been documented in other countries.The case was brought by Auckland health service Te Whatu Ora, which acknowledged that the situation was a difficult one for all parties but stressed that its top priority was the welfare and wellbeing of all children under its care.