Questions are being raised about the system for prescribing 'takeaway' methadone following the tragic death of a six-year-old in New South Wales, who drank orange juice mixed with the opioid replacement medication.
A coronial inquest in Lismore has heard a six-year-old boy died after drinking orange juice that had been mixed with the methadone prescribed for his mother.Blood tests showed he had methadone in his systemThe boy, who cannot be identified for legal reasons and was referred to in court as MO, died in the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital in Brisbane on August 6, 2018.
The court heard his parents, who both suffer from intellectual impairment, initially decided not to seek medical help because they received differing answers when they asked the child if he had drunk the mixture. Both parents have declined to attend the inquest, and previously pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to provide for a child, causing danger of death.The court heard both parents had been prescribed methadone, which is an opioid replacement medication, and were allowed several "takeaway" doses a week for use away from the dispensing pharmacy.
The bottles containing the methadone also had warning labels that stated the contents should be kept out of reach of children, and may cause death if taken by somebody else.
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