Petition Tag - baby

We were very excited to have our first ultrasound of our baby done. We booked at the hospital and was already to go. We were in disbelief when we were told that my spouse was not allowed into the room for the whole procedure! My spouse was only allowed in for the last 2 minutes.

The reason for this I was told was because they don't want to have to be the one to inform both parents if something is not right they leave that up to the mother to face alone. This doesn't seem to be the "rule" or "policy" in all Hospitals or ultrasound places. So why take someone's right away?

Everyone should be allowed at least one person to be there by their side through all types of ultrasounds!

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We are a group of parents in South Warwickshire with children who have had issues with tongue-ties. You can contact us via our Support Group on Facebook:

http://tinyurl.com/tongue-tie-warwickshire

Please note this petition can only be signed by those who live in the Warwick District Council and the Stratford-On-Avon District Council areas.

For further information on Tongue-Tie, here is a link to NHS Choices and a link to the NICE (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence) guidelines:

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/tongue-tie/Pages/Introduction.aspx

http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/11180/31411/31411.pdf

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Over 90% of TTTS pregnancies end with mortality when conservatively monitored.

Please help greatly reduce these outcomes by signing this petition to simply require an increase in monitoring of pregnancies at high risk for developing TTTS or SIUGR.

If you have recently been Diagnosed with TTTS, please visit TTTSParents.org



Helpful resources:

http://goo.gl/bRCPy

http://goo.gl/iiR8R

http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/18262471

http://www.mendeley.com/research/twin-anemia-polycythemia-sequence-prenatal-perspective-7/#

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I am making this petition as I came across a page on Facebook called "dead baby jokes" I am extremely upset that someone could make a group with this name And actually make jokes about dead babies!

I myself have suffered a miscarriage and I know thousands of other people have too and it was the worst experience of my life and to find out that people are getting entertainment out of it is very upsetting.

I am hoping with this petition that Facebook will close such pages down and no pages like this will be allowed to be made again.

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https://www.facebook.com/DeadBabyJokes?ref=ts#!/DeadBabyJokes

This site has been set up to make so called 'jokes' about dead babies. This page, however, makes reference to sexual content with children, rape, racial comments/jabs and allows users to upload pictures of dead babies on its page. There are pictures of dead babies in bins, pictures of children with disabilities running and so called funny comments attached.

The majority of people on facebook do not like this page, yet its numbers continue to grow and facebook still appear to be doing nothing about this. Why? There is no child protection to stop children of any age accessing this pages. My self and others believe that pages and their content should be approved and have strict security to ensure children cannot access this horrific content. It is also a very disrespectful page for women and families who have suffered the loss of a child as this has been reported to facebook previously.

Myself and others would like this page deleted by facebook once and for all and to make facebook pages more secure for it's users.

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Thousands of pills filled with powdered human baby flesh discovered by customs officials in South Korea
More than 17,000 pills smuggled into country have been intercepted since last August. Pills viewed as a “miracle cure” for all ailments – but unsurprisingly they are harmful.

Thousands of pills filled with powdered human flesh have been discovered by customs officials in South Korea, it was revealed today.

The capsules are in demand because they are viewed as being a medicinal “cure-all”.

The grim trade is being run from China where corrupt medical staff are said to be tipping off medical companies when babies are aborted or delivered still-born.

Dead baby pills: This is ground baby powder which tests discovered is 99.7 per cent human last year. South Korean officials have stopped 17,000 dead baby pills being imported since last August

The tiny corpses are then bought, storedin household refrigerators in homes of those involved in the trade before they are removed and taken to clinics where they are placed in medical drying microwaves.

Once the skin is tinder dry, it is pummelled into powder and then processed into capsules along with herbs to disguise the true ingredients from health investigators and customs officers.

The discoveries since last August has shocked even hardened customs agents who have pledged to strengthen inspections.

Chinese officials are understood to have been aware of the trade and have tried to stop the capsules being exported but thousands of packets of them have been smuggled through to South Korea.

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Tongue tie in an infant is easy to diagnose and easy to treat. It can cause feeding problems, especially with breastfeeding - baby feeds constantly but does not gain weight, the latch is 'correct' but the mother suffers sore and damaged nipples, the baby is unsettled and unhappy most of the time and suffers with hiccups, wind and brings back milk.

This leads to many mothers giving up within the first few days or weeks, unaware there is a problem. Worse, a problem is diagnosed but nothing is done, leaving a mother struggling and unsure what to do for the best. Treatment currently on the NHS can take weeks or months, depending on your PCT.

Midwives can be trained to recognise and treat tongue tie, upon discussion with the mother, in the first few days after birth, giving women the chance to establish breastfeeding successfully.

This could increase breastfeeding rates, and can only have a positive effect on mother's mental health.

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A 4 week old baby boy who was beaten and hospitalised with suspected rape injuries. this baby boy suffered from such severe beatings he has been left with all his ribs broken, a broken arm, broken collar bone, punctured lungs and severe bruising, he has even suffered a cardiac arrest at such a young age.

We as a members of the voting public are asking that those responsible, who tortured this baby boy are kept in prison, and given a life sentence, no chance of parole, with an indeterminate sentence in place, for the safety and protection of the public, most importantly our children.

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At present VAT is charged on many products and services for babies and children under 5 in south Africa, one of very few countries doing this.
For examlple, 14% of the shelf price of infant formula, nappies (diapers), baby clothing and medicinal products like colic drops.

These goods are already almost beyond the financial reach of most of the population. The government's taxation of these products highlights its nonchalance regarding the welfare of children.

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Miss Neelu Chaudhari was struck off the Register of the General Pharmaceutical Council after a 27 year unblemished career as a senior pharmacist, for Whistleblowing.

The professional body accused her of bringing the profession into disrepute by her belief that the drug overdoses prescribed in a five week period, before her neice's death, were not errors but deliberate and should have been investigated by the professional bodies, independently of the Coroner, Police Primary Health care Trust, NHS Hospital Trusts and the hospitals.

The drug overdoses prescribed by the GP were continued by hospital paediatricians after admission to hospital and the baby was denied intensive care. She was then subjected to a secret "withholding withdrawing treatment", "allow to die" and "Do Not Resuscitate" medical opinion against her parent's wishes and without their knowledge.

The hospital doctors finally invited social workers to apply for a secret ex-parte Emergency Protection Order and Police arrest Warrant to isolate the baby in hospital, remove her mother from her cubicle and deny family visits to hospital in the last 6 days of her life.

The details of the drug overdoses were omitted by the Coroner, Pathologists and Police at the Inquest.

Neelu compiled an expert report into the drug overdoses and provided copies to the respective professional bodies yet no doctor, pharmacist or nurse has been properly investigated. Instead, Neelu has been struck off for doing what the professional bodies ought to have done. She is also required to pay costs of thousands of pounds to her professional body.

This petition seeks public opinion as to whether,

1. Miss Neelu Chaudhari should be reinstated as a pharmacist;
2. Whether the professional bodies should investigate complaints independently, promptly and without time limits;
3. Whether Whistleblowers should be compensated for their time and effort and commended for their courage, honesty and integrity.

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Research around the world has proven that sitting in a rear-facing position in the car is five times safer for children under the age of 4 than sitting in a forward-facing position. Young children have heavy heads that are large in proportion to their bodies. The bones in their neck are still soft and under-developed.

If a young child is sitting forward-facing during a frontal collision, their head is thrown violently forward on impact, putting all the force of the crash onto their delicate necks. This puts them at risk of sustaining spinal injuries.

Sitting rear-facing in the car protects young children from spinal injuries in a frontal collision.  The back of the car-seat cradles their head, neck and back.  The back of the seat takes up the force of the collision, NOT the child’s neck. Their head is cushioned by the back of the seat and not thrown forward.

Australia has the highest standards of crash-testing child-restraints in the world, HOWEVER we have the earliest age of forward-facing our babies in the developed world at just 6 months of age.  In the U.S. experts recommend babies remain rear-facing until age 2.  In Sweden, children are kept rear-facing until age 4. Seats that can accommodate larger children rear-facing are readily available overseas.

The Australian Road Rules and the Australian Child Restraint Standards both allow for children to remain rear-facing until the age of 4.  However, Australian child restraint manufacturers are not making these seats available in Australia because they feel there is no market for them in Australia.

Australian children deserve the same level of protection as their overseas cousins. Our children deserve the best possible protection in a crash.  Let’s build upon our high safety standards to keep our kids even safer than ever before.

Join us at Rear-Facing Down Under on Facebook for more information on the important safety benefits of rear-facing.

Watch our YouTube video and subscribe to our Channel:

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The story of Baby Brianna is a hard one, but it is the ugly reality of child abuse. Violent family members caused her death while others hid what they knew was going on.

"They raped her; they beat her," said District Attorney Susana Martinez who prosecuted the case. "She had bite marks on her face, cheek, head, arms, legs, chest, torso, everywhere.

"Literally bruised from head to toe, from the top of her head all throughout her body all the way to the big toe on her right foot."

She was beaten and raped by her own family.

"Massive bruising on the head, and then her little fingers were lacerated. Her mother Stephanie Lopez only received 27 years for the death of her own daughter! They say she is living a great life behind bars with family keeping her lots of money in her account and having a great girlfriend that she gets to be with daily! Why should she get to live any kind of life while Brianna does not have one. She will still be young when she gets out and I think she should be behind bars and have nothing for the rest of her life just like Brianna had nothing in her 5 short months of life!

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In the UK, 11 babies are stillborn every day. And shocking new research, published last month in The Lancet, found Britain is ranked second from bottom: 33 out of 35 countries in the developed world for stillbirth rates. Countries like Australia – which have invested heavily in research – have managed to bring their rates down. In the UK, they have remained the same for the past 10 years. This is simply not acceptable.

Which is why Grazia has today joined forces with the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, Sands, to demand change.

We want the government to fund research to discover what is causing these babies to die, and to develop new ways of screening pregnancies to find out which babies are at risk of stillbirth… and save their lives before it is too late.

Whether this is a scan in the third trimester or even the introduction of hand held scanners to detect babies’ movements, what is key is funding for this vital research to be carried out.

Doctors can screen for other problems in pregnancy such as Down’s syndrome, because the research has been done to find out how to predict which babies are at risk. Research into cot death has reduced deaths by 70% in the last 20 years. Stillbirth is now 10 times more common than cot death.

Chief executive Neal Long says, ‘With 11 babies dying every day, it’s a national scandal which has persisted for far too long. Most stillborn babies have no abnormalities and no clear reason why they died. Early delivery could potentially save the lives of many of these babies. We know that the antenatal screening techniques used today just aren’t accurate enough to pick out these at-risk babies, so many otherwise perfect babies are missed, and tragically they die.’

Experts argue that a significant proportion of these deaths could be avoided if mothers received better care during pregnancy and labour. But current routine antenatal screening methods, measuring baby’s growth with a tape measure and scanning at 12 and 20 weeks, aren’t working when it comes to preventing many stillbirths.

Causes of stillbirth can be anything from an infection through to problems with the placenta. Grazia editor-in-chief Jane Bruton says, ‘It’s shocking how many women are going through the pain and devastation of stillbirth every day. We believe research needs to be urgently carried out to discover how improved screening for pregnant women could help reduce the UK’s rates... and save more women from the trauma of losing their child.’

Now you can join the campaign to help, by signing our petition. ‘The support of Grazia readers will really make a huge difference’ adds Long. `The Government listens to public opinion and we need them to know that people value the lives of these precious babies. We urge you to sign our petition and help get the research that is so desperately needed.’

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Early cord clamping (ECC) is defined as any method by which the cord is manipulated to stop the flow of blood to the baby while it is still pulsating. This includes clamping, cutting, hand squeezing, tying or holding the baby too high or too low. An umbilical cord pulsates for between 7 mins for an unmedicated birth and up to 20 mins for a medicated birth.

In this time the full volume of blood the newborn infant requires is still passed from the placenta until it stops pulsating or until it turns white. Currently mainstream procedure is to immediately (within 30 seconds) clamp and cut the babys functioning cord. Whenever a pulsating umbilical cord is clamped, 20-60% of the baby's total blood volume is trapped inside the placenta. It will take over 6 months for the baby to replenish the volume of blood lost by early cord clamping.

Short cord, maternal haemorrhage, c-section, respiratory distress are just a few of the worthless reasons to clamp a cord. Even a baby in distress can be revived with the cord intact. All of the restricted umbilical cord problems are usually the result of drugs given during labour, including oxytocin, Pitocin, iv fluids, and pain medications, not a result of leaving the cord intact. The only situations in which a cord should be early clamped is when the cord has torn or with a placenta previa. Babies born via c-section can be delivered with their cord and placenta intact.

Multiples can also be delivered without risk of restricted umbilical cord problems. ECC is also routinely being done in some countries to get stem cell blood for banking (effectively taking those cells away from your baby when it needs it and possibly using for them at a later stage but mostly for other people). Restricted umbilical cord problems associated with anaemia are Autism, heart perforations, thyroid disorders, brain tumours, leukaemia, SIDS, hormonal imbalances and liver/kidney disease. When a baby requires to be resuscitated which is not that uncommon (1 in 16), the full volume of blood is required to ensure they are receiving the maximum dose of oxygenated blood.

As the blood travels into the baby's expanding lungs, once they become filled, the baby will feel its own signal to breathe and will do so with fully expanded lungs but it is usually procedure during "resuscitation" also to cut the cord, take the baby to a warming tray to make access easier for the attending midwifes, OBs etc which is not a necessity and is counterproductive. Please sign this petition in the hope that we can educate all birth attendants that early cord clamping is doing more harm than good and the practice should be abolished completely.

The baby's umbilical cord should be left at the very minimum until the cord has stopped pulsating. Another 20mins in a birthing unit is not too much to ask. First DO NO HARM. Check out this link for further information http://www.givingbirthnaturally.com/restricted-umbilical-cord-problems.html

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Baby Peter Connelly, Victoria Climbié, RyanLovell Hancox, Little Charlie Hunt to name just a few.

All of these babies were deliberately and brutally attacked under a sustained campaign of torture and hatred before being murdered by an adult supposedly looking after them.

Justice for the families and for the children themselves can only be achieved by the reinstatement of a penalty that fits the horrific nature of the crime.
Soft justice simply does not work.

We need harsh and unforgiving penalties for the perpetrators of these kinds of deliberate and despicable acts on defenceless babies and children.

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Many parents have noticed their children having adverse skin reactions in the nappy region after the introduction of "Dry Max" technology into their "Active Fit" and "New Born" (called "Cruisers" etc in other countries) range of nappies.

Some parents believe that the rashes are linked to the "Dry Max" technology and at the very least these nappies leak and are not for purpose sold. If you feel as strongly as we do please sign this petition.

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Please sign our petition, to get my friend back to the USA. Valentina, has been a US resident for over 20 years. She MARRIED TO A US CITIZEN & went back to ITALY, to save her mother's life. Upon her return, she was deported back to Italy, being told her visa is expired.

PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION, SO WE CAN GET HER BACK TO THE USA! The more signatures we have, the better the chance, we have to get her back to the US!

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The Coroner cannot investigate any deaths of babies in utero - stillborn babies. No matter the circumstances or gestational age, a baby in one moment is not eligible for a Coronial Inquest and, a moment later (once a breath is taken), he or she is. Impact to parents, families and society is the same for a baby that is capable of independent life no matter whether a breath is taken. The Coroner's influence and powers is needed just the same: to investigate; to hold accountable; to bring awareness; to change. It is the institution that shines light on deaths of an unusual or concerning nature and recommends changes so these events don’t happen in the future.

Importantly, the number of stillbirth deaths has not changed, despite improvement in medical practice and technology, since the 1980s. And 30-35% of babies born still are said to have died of ‘causes unknown’. The Coroner’s Court can potentially help understand these deaths and ultimately motivate change.

So we seek a change to the Coroner’s Act so that these babies’ deaths can be under the jurisdiction of the Coroner’s Court.

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Family Law Act 1975 to be corrected. New Family Law Act to have the following Terms included:

* In Australia, Federal Magistrates are to do a check on both parents with DOCS and Police, at the beginnning of the Court proceedings, to see if any records are held on either parent before issuing a Court Order for either parent to have Custody of the child.

* Domestic Violence Father not ever to be given Custody of a baby by submitting a lying Affidavit without any evidence. Especially the day after being threatened by Police with an AVO being taken out on him.

* Mother of baby always to be Subpoenad to Court.

* Both sides of a story are to be heard. Especially considering the Mother has evidence to back up everything she is saying.

* Baby not to be removed from Mother unless there is a decent enough reason to do so when both sides of the story have been heard.

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Sands, stillbirth and neonatal death charity is very concerned that bereaved parents in the future may not be offered the opportunity to see and hold their baby after death. This is because current guidelines by NICE (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence) to midwifery units and to bereaved parents, on seeing and holding their baby after the baby has died, are currently open to misinterpretation.

This guideline (Clinical Guideline 45: Antenatal and postnatal mental health) consists of 4 different documents:

1. The full clinical guideline
2. Clinical management and service guidance
3. Quick reference guide
4. Information for people who use NHS services

In each of these the wording is slightly but significantly different. The current wording in the quick reference guide, which is specifically aimed at policy makers and midwifery staff states: “Do not routinely encourage mothers of infants who are stillborn or die soon after birth to see and hold the dead infant.” This is very different from the statement in the Full Clinical Guideline which reads ”women should not be encouraged to hold their dead baby if they do not wish to.”

Sands already has evidence that one Trust in England has adopted the wording in the Quick reference guide as policy for staff. As a result we are deeply concerned that this wording will be used by other Trusts across the UK if confusion over the guidelines continues.

Sands maintains that parents must continue to be offered choice about what is done when their baby dies, and that in order for choice to be real, it must be informed. Parents have a fundamental right to see their own baby, and no health professional, however well meaning, has the right to deny them this choice.

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Baby P's abusers who horrifically killed him within the year of his life should not be protected by getting new identities when released from prison.

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On Saturday, September 20th 2009 in Winnipeg, Manitoba a 23 year old man assaulted his infant 8 month old baby, and is now confirmed that the baby was stabbed near the eye, over a dispute between him and his 29 year old common-law-wife. Its been said by Child welfare workers that violence against children has increased dramatically in the past 20 years and that out of the recent 10 child deaths 3 of which were homicides.

And on top of that in the month of September there was 2 serious brutal assaults, the September 20th incident involving a 23 year old man, his common-law-wife and there 8 month old baby who was stabbed near the eye after an arguement, but just weeks before that in the same complex on September 1st a 14 month old baby was abducted from her home and was severely beaten by a 19 year old women. These are only the most recent violent incidents against children. This needs to STOP.

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Surrogacy is legal in some states, Washington is not one of them. Homosexual and hetrosexual couples, as well as single men and women who cannot have children of their own (or are unable to carry a pregnancy to term) and live in Washington state have no choice but to adopt.

As many as 15% of United States residents are infertile. To put that in perspective, think of ten couples you know. Up to three of three of those couples will not be able to conceive because one of them is infertile.

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As a mom of 2 boys, I have had the experience of horrible diaper changes while in public. Many restaurants, rest stops, grocery stores and such do not have changing tables in their restrooms.

I have resorted to having to change my child on the nasty floors or counter tops, even the tale gate of my truck! It is disgusting and unsanitary and our children deserve way better. I'ts a simple solution that can help keep our kids safer and healthier!

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Mutter verweigert Abgabe des vom Arzt gestempelten Mutter-Kind-Passes und fordert Gleichberechtigung durch WAHLFREIHEIT für Hebammenbetreuung!

Caroline Oblasser, die Autorin und Verlegerin von "Der Kaiserschnitt hat kein Gesicht" (www.kaiserschnittbuch.de) und des neuen, richtungweisenden Buches "Luxus Privatgeburt" (www.privatgeburt.de), wird sich weigern, den vom Arzt abgstempelten Mutter-Kind-Pass bei der Krankenkasse vorzulegen und wendet sich damit auch an die mediale Öffentlichkeit. "Frauen, wehrt Euch! Es kann nicht sein, dass das Weiblichste in unserem Leben, nämlich Schwangerschaft & Geburt, in die Hände der Ärzte gelegt werden muss und von den Hebammen nicht betreut werden darf!! Unterschreibt deswegen noch heute den Aufruf und macht unser Land auf dieses Übel aufmerksam."

In Deutschland hat eine schwangere Frau seit Jahren die freie Wahl, ob sie durch eine Hebamme oder einen Arzt betreut werden will. In Schweden gibt es keine niedergelassenen Frauenärzte, sondern nur Hebammen für Schwangerschaft, Geburt und Wochenbett. Ebenso ist die Hebamme in den Niederlanden die erste Ansprechperson für werdende Mütter!

Caroline Oblasser ist nur die Spitze des Eisbergs, denn schon lange herrscht von Seiten der Mütter große Unzufriedenheit über den Mutter-Kind-Pass: Zu unübersichtlich, zu unpersönlich, zu medizinisch – ein Monopol der Gynäkologen! Frauen wollen echte Geburts-Hilfe von Hebammen, nicht Entbindungstechnik, Geburtsmanagement und Apparatemedizin mit einer 95 %igen Interventionsrate bei Geburten!

ENGLISH:
Caroline Oblasser, author of “Faceless Caesarean” (www.kaiserschnittbuch.de) and her new book “Luxury Homebirth” (www.privatgeburt.de) will refuse to submit her Mother-Child-Bill of Health to the Health Insurance. She wants to draw attention to the one-way situation of pregnancy care which is not accepted to be done by a midwife. It has to be done from a gynaecologist, if a pregnant woman doesn’t want to waive 2.000 Euro! “Women, fight back! It cannot be that we are forced to go to doctors and not to midwives if we wish to! Sign our petition now!” says Caroline Oblasser and goes to public and media.

There is free choice in Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands. In Austria we also want the right to chose without penalty!

Caroline Oblasser is just one out of many women who are not satisfied. The Mother-Child-Bill of Health is too confusing, too impersonal, too medical – a monopoly of gynaecologists! Women want true birth-care from midwives, not technical childbearing, delivery management and high-technology medicine with 95 % medical interventions at births!

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A damning report by Ofsted recently revealed that up to 4 children die every week in England from abuse or neglect. Two thirds of the victims were less than a year old.

Experts say that 1 in 10 UK children suffers abuse or neglect and that most maltreated children are not known to the authorities. In the UK it is estimated that one million children are affected each year.

An average of 57 sexual offences against UK children were recorded DAILY by police in 2008. In more than 800 cases the victim was aged under four.

The current judicial system does not adequately reflect the serious nature of these crimes. The death of a child through abuse or neglect is often punished with a prison sentence ranging from only 1-14 years, most of which are automatically halved with parole. This needs to change now.

WE PETITION THE GOVERNMENT TO:

1. Increase the maximum sentence of 14 years for ‘allowing or causing death of a child’ to a discretionary life sentence, naming this new ruling ‘Peter’s Law’, as it was the murder of Peter Connelly that opened the nations eyes to the injustice of the current tariff.

2. Review sentencing guidelines for ALL crimes relating to child abuse, increasing both minimum and maximum tariffs.

3. Introduce a law concerning fatal abuse without fatal injury where death as a result of complications from failure to seek medical attention; illness in a child whose immune system is impaired by the stress of chronic abuse or neglect; or abuse or neglect of a child already impaired by chronic illness, is labeled murder.

4. Ensure that sentences for child abuse run consecutively.

5. Abolish parole for all crimes against children.

6. Life sentences should mean LIFE.

7. Close the legal loophole which allows abusers to escape jail when the child survives, by blaming each other for the abuse.


Please see the accompanying document for a thorough explanation of our law proposals & examples of the injustice of our current legal system.


In light of the tragic and avoidable death of Baby P and the more recent serious child protection failings in Doncaster and Birmingham, we call for urgent improvements to child protection nationwide to include:

1. The NSPCC say that babies & toddlers are particularly vulnerable to physical abuse. If regular compulsory health checks were introduced, at least 4 times a year for ages 0-2 and three times a year for ages 2-5, they would help to reveal any signs of abuse or neglect. Social Services should be alerted if appointments become overdue.

2. Social workers & health visitors should be allowed to physically examine young 'at risk' children. A child on the 'at risk' register means that child is considered to be at risk of significant harm. Examinations should therefore be compulsory at every visit of an at risk child or when any new child is brought to the attention of the authorities where there are reported concerns of abuse as this is the easiest, quickest & most effective way to determine if a child is being physically abused or not.

In the news recently was a 3 year old Carlisle toddler who was tortured by her father Reuben Williams her entire life. Because a Health Visitor determined after speaking to the mother that there were no child protection concerns without ever seeing the child and because 3 months later, a Social Worker did not examine the child despite renewed allegations of abuse, she was subjected to a further completely avoidable 18 months of being whipped, burned, punched, scratched and bitten. Her body is now permanently disfigured by nearly 200 scars and the emotional harm done is incalculable. Points 1) & 2) should hopefully avoid unnecessary & prolonged suffering of this kind.

3. Social Workers should carry out a task list at every visit which should be adopted nationwide and include:

- check the cleanliness/hygiene of all living quarters
- check for evidence of undisclosed people living at the property & Criminal Record Bureau Check all residents & regular visitors
- check there is sufficient food and other essential supplies
- physically interact with the child
- physically examine the child
- insist children in nappies be changed to reveal any cases of serious nappy rash
- insist any food, ointment, paint etc be removed from the child
- ensure they see the child unrestrained & moving, crawling or walking to assess any difficulty with movement & possible injury
- see children old enough to speak on their own in the presence of another professional, so that the child can talk uninhibited away from its carers
- check for signs of drug use or alcohol abuse as these are often linked to cases of child abuse & neglect
- observe family's interaction with pets as abusive behaviour may be indicative of domestic violence
- check for any other dangers

4. If a social worker strongly suspects physical abuse, they should have the power to remove the child immediately while the matter is investigated, with or without police aid.

5. Social workers must be aware of 'red flags' that could be cause for concern and should check on the child without delay every time one is raised as the child may have already sustained injury or be in poor physical condition. These should include:

- carers failing to attend any appointments
- being denied access to a child or its living quarters
- carers regularly appear not to be at home or who say a child is unavailable (confirm child's whereabouts immediately)
- carers saying that they can't see anyone for a period of time

6. Up to 80% of Social Workers' time is spent on administration. Free up this time to be spent with vulnerable children instead with adequate admin support. Also, main focus needs to be protecting vulnerable children - not meeting targets, budgets or red tape.

7. An urgent review of the criteria required to have a child taken into care. In Baby P's case 2 doctors, the police and a Social Worker stated separately that Baby P should not be returned to his mother and yet lawyers said there was insufficient evidence to start care proceedings.

8. Introduction of the whistleblowers' hotline for the use of all child protection agencies and the public to expose internal bad practice. Better protection for whistleblowers and a ban on gagging orders in such circumstances as they only serve to hush up bad practice and allow it to continue unchecked.

9. Provide a suitable and adequate alternative to the Children's database which must be used and accessed by the NHS, Social Services and the police to help strengthen communication between the agencies. Currently 66% of hospitals fail to check if an injured child is involved with social services and a lack of communication was cited in 75% of child death Serious Case Reviews.

10. to recruit and retain adequate numbers of high quality, well trained Social Workers & Health Visitors.

11. If abusive pet owners can be banned from keeping animals, a similar law should be in place to protect children from abusive carers or carers who allow a child to be abused or neglected. Abusers should forfeit all visitation & parental rights. Why should children have less rights to protection than animals?

12. A child's welfare must always take priority over keeping a family together.

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This petition came about due to my experiences having a baby with care from the NHS and my sister having a baby with care in Australia. The differences between the two are immense, my own personal experiences with midwives is awful and I am collecting accounts from people of their experiences having a baby on the NHS, if you can help me with this please email birthexperiences@live.co.uk

The changes i would like to see are:-

- more awareness of pre-natal and post-natal depression with counselling sessions freely available for all women in pregnancy and after birth.

- Consistent care during pregnancy with more adequate pre-natal classes.

- Private rooms for all mothers and their partners in labour and after labour during the hospital stay.

- Improved after-care i.e- in Australia they have the baby in a nursery for the first night and transfer you to a midwife run hotel for 4 days after an uncomplicated birth.

- More access to alternative therapies to make labour a less 'medical' ordeal.

I consulted a homeopath who prescribed caullophyllum which greatly improved my labour, i think these kind of services should be available on the NHS.

Pregnancy and Labour are a very precious time in a woman's life and i don't think women are being treated with the care and consideration they should be.

I aim to have my petition signed by as many people as possible and have as many birth experiences as possible to send to the government and highlight the issues women face when having children today, we deserve more.

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My children were abused in a daycare in Idaho. Then I found out that daycare would not be shut down because charges were misdemeanor charges not Felony.

The only way a daycare in Idaho can get shut down is if a child is killed or severely injured (felony). I have spoken with congress and head of daycare licensing and they have confirmed this information.

I am looking into taking this petition to the supreme court to protect all children!!!!!!!!!

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My dear brother/sister, Namaste/Salam,

Before expressing my cause, I wish to present a small saying which I feel from within my heart. "They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to forget them", this saying itself portrays the reason behind this petition.

Life is a stage where we are meant to play, but nowadays life has become more of a stress. An Indian TV Serial aired on channel Star Plus named "Baa Bahoo Aur Baby" produced by JD Majethia and Aatish Kapadia is not an ordinary serial. This serial shows fun, energy, reality, love, sacrifice and tickles your belly. Yes...this drama shows life.

Every character in the show has become a part and parcel of thousands of viewers....and it's not surprising that many viewers have also become addicted to it. One saying is so true...when a brick slides away, the whole structure becomes weak and may fall. This is a very case at the moment. Mrs Vaishali Thakkar aka Praveena bhabhi has left Baa Bahoo Aur Baby putting all the viewers in an unbearable grief.

There are ways to keep up the realistic nature of this serial and here are some of them:

(a). The dead body shown could be of Praveena bhabhi’s duplicate. Real Praveena bhabhi could have been trapped and aided by someone else…..only reason for her not returning home for so long might be that her memory would have got lost completely.

(b). Mrs Vaishali Thakkar can still enter BBaB in some other role. People with similar faces do exist in real life too. Furthermore, Hats Off has already shown a character Prema who was identical to Charubalaben. By doing this, Mrs Vaishali Thakkar will also get a relief from the old same character (if she finds it so).

(c). Another possibility is to rewind BBaB back to 13th Oct 2007 and continue from there, but now in the presence of Praveena bhabhi. All the events which have happened after 13th Oct 07 will be assumed to have already happened.

Hats Off Producers are fantastic writers, and I am sure they will have even more fabulous ways to bring back Praveena bhabhi back in the show.

The writers are doing a great job in keeping the track going as same as when it was during Praveena bhabhi's presence. However, there is an emptiness around the Krishna Villa which is sensed every time, every where and with every new episode. This is an emptiness of someone who made things lively, someone who despite sometimes absent was present....but now without her everything has become stern and pallid. Yes, that special person is Praveena bhabhi.

Please support our cause. Sign the petition, one statement will be enough.....because when a heart speaks it doesn't need much explanation....that statement will directly reach the heart of the person concerned. Please help us so that we can help you to bring back Mrs Vaishali Thakkar aka Praveena bhabhi of Baa Bahoo Aur Baby.

Thank you,
God Bless.

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RSV is the most common cause of lower-respiratory-tract infection in infancy or childhood. RSV causes cold-like symptoms that can trigger chronic breathing difficulties if the lungs become involved. RSV occurs in seasonal outbreaks, usually through autumn to winter. In Australia the risk of catching an RSV infection is at its highest from May to October.

Prevalence and Risk
RSV is highly contagious. Approximately one-half of all infants are infected with the RSV during the first year of life and nearly all children have been infected at least once by the time they reach their second birthday.

Up to 90 per cent of bronchiolitis hospitalisations and up to 50 per cent of hospital admissions caused by winter pneumonia are caused by RSV.

Diseases of the respiratory system account for the highest proportion of all admissions to hospital in children aged 1-14 years, according to the latest data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

Babies born prematurely as well as those with chronic lung disease or congenital heart disease are at the highest risk of severe disease and hospitalization due to RSV. While adults and healthy children can normally cope with the mild cold-like symptoms of an infection, at risk infants are at a high risk of being admitted into hospital. In babies who are born prematurely or who have lung or heart complications, RSV may cause life-threatening conditions requiring intensive care.

Why are premmie babies most at risk for RSV infection?
Pre-term infants are at the highest risk for serious RSV infection and related hospitalisation. Premature infants have underdeveloped lungs, which can be a contributing factor to increased risk for RSV disease and cardiopulmonary complications.

Infants with a congenital heart disease (structural or functional defect in the heart that is present at birth) or a chronic lung disease are also at increased risk of developing severe RSV disease, hospitalisation and death.

Other risk factors for severe RSV disease include low birth weight (less than 2500 grams or 5.5 pounds) and a compromised immune system.

Other contributing factors are exposure to tobacco smoke, having school-age siblings, attending daycare and living in crowded conditions

Effects on Families
Parents of infants born preterm experience an enormous amount of emotional trauma, stress and grief dealing with the complications surrounding the early arrival of their child and the lengthy hospital stay that follows. The average duration of hospitalisation for these premature infants is seven weeks. In addition they have to live with ongoing health concerns and problems with their children. The readmission of the at risk infant due to RSV presents considerable further burdens, both emotionally and financially, to these families; and to the public health system. These infants are at risk of intensive care admission, long term lung damage and in rare cases death. For families in regional areas the cost of readmission is considerably higher. Thus they live in fear of their child being readmitted to hospital and isolate their child from the rest of the community to prevent this occurring. For those with other children another hospital stay will mean more disruption for the whole family with siblings often failing to understand why mum is away so much of the time.

Susan, mum to Connor born at 26 weeks and now 2 years old explains “I am at the doctors with Connor whenever he has the slightest cough to ensure that he is okay and live in constant fear of him being sick. I have become germ phobic and very aware of sick people in shopping centres etc. – I have never placed Connor in a shopping trolley and I keep antibacterial handwash in my purse at all times. I tend to keep Connor more isolated during the winter / flu season which is detrimental to him both developmentally and socially. I know the majority of people think I am overly protective but any mum in a similar position would do the same to protect their child. The greatest issue to our family has been the isolation factor and watching Connor having to miss out on many fun events and parties. This just breaks my heart .”

RSV in Australia?
There is currently no vaccination available for RSV. One medicine has been registered in Australia to prevent serious lower respiratory tract disease caused in children at high risk of severe RSV infection. This medication is called Palivizumab. However, the medication is currently not funded by the Federal Government making it very costly to the Public Health System or parents wanting their children to receive it. The costs range up to $1000 per injection (depending on the size of the baby or child) and the injections should be given over at least a 6 month period. Thus the cost per year for the first two years of a high risk child’s life are in the region of $16,000. Such a high cost makes the medication unreachable for most parents of preterm or seriously ill children with chronic lung disease or heart conditions.

Sources:
Surveillance of viral pathogens in Australia: respiratory syncytial virus. Paul Roche, Stephen Lambert, Janeane Spencer. Communicable Diseases Intelligence: Vol 27, No 1. 2003

Australia's Children: their health and well-being 2002. Fadwa Al-Yamin, Meredith Bryant, Hilary Sargeant. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare Canberra. AIHW Cat. No. PHE 36. Canberra: AIHW.

Report of the Australian Paediatric Care Registry (ANZPIC): 2003, 2004, 2005.

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