Ice on the streets

By Simon Forbes

THE ever present dilemma of street kids and life threatening drug abuse was given fresh poignancy this week when a local 17 year old girl was rushed by ambulance to Shellharbour Public Hospital in a coma after overdosing on the latest drug craze to hit the streets the devastating and debilitating hallucinogenic, Ice.

Sadly however, according to he mother, the girl was released from hospital the following day in spite of evidence of bruising and track marks on her arms indicating a history of drug abuse.

The girl, whose name is being withheld to protect her privacy, has been living on the streets for the past 4 years, a casualty of a broken marriage and alleged parental abuse.

Following the overdose incident, she is temporarily living at home with her mother.

The girls mother alleges that the doctor in charge of the girl when she was brought into hospital refused to discuss the girls condition with her.

The system is wrong, said the girls mother.

Shes only 17 years old, and shes my daughter, but the doctor refused to talk to me about her.

I dont think its right, as a parent, to be brushed off like that by a doctor.

He just didnt seem to care what happened to her.

What chance have these kids got, when the system ignores them like that.

The girls mother is calling on the government to rethink their policy on classifying 17 year olds as adults.

The system is wrong and needs to be changed, she said.

It is stupid that a 17 year old is classified as an adult and that because of this parents cant gain access to a medical report without the childs consent.

How am I supposed to be able to help her, if the doctors wont even talk to me?

My daughter is one of the ones who has fallen through the cracks.

Id hate see what has happened to her, happen to other young girls.

A spokesperson for the South Eastern Sydney Illawarra Health (SESIH) said that patient presented to Shellharbour Hospital on October 14 after having a reaction to an un-named drug.

She arrived at the hospital in a stable condition and remained stable until she was discharged the following day, the spokesperson said.

There was never any need to resuscitate the patient while she was in hospital..

Due to the patients age and standard confidentiality requirements, medical staff could only discuss her treatment and condition in detail with family members after obtaining consent from the patient.

Once consent had been given the head of the Emergency Department sat down at length with the patients mother and explained her treatment.