A nine-week-old baby boy bled to death hours after being circumcised, an inquest was told. Celian Noumbiwe was operated on in 2007 at a doctor’s surgery in Reading but later his parents opened his nappy and found a “huge amount” of blood.Heck knows why parents have their boys circumcised in the first place...
Recording a narrative verdict, the Berkshire Coroner criticised the lack of advice given to the couple on postoperative care, noting that the emergency number given to them did not work. After the surgery, Carole Youmby and her partner, Monthe Bautrel, originally from France, were encouraged to leave the surgery with the baby within ten minutes when he should have been observed for longer, the court was told.
Ms Youmby said that she had been told that the child’s nappy should not be changed for four hours. After calling the emergency number several times, the couple decided to call their GP in the morning. The next day, February 22, 2007, the child was taken from his home in Slough to the nearby Wexham Park Hospital where he died in his mother’s arms.
Source: The Times
9 comments:
Mark,
Heck knows why....... custom/religion?
No doubt there will be a costly inquiry by the NHS/PCT which will result in 'lessons being learned' when it is obvious someone 'cocked-up' - to coin a phrase.
This does not negate what is a sad event for the parents and obviously my sympathies to them
We don't let girls have parts cut off their genitals due to custom or religion. Why don't boys get the same protection?
ML, you wouldn't believe what some Muslim and African countries get up to ...
Celian Noumbiwe whose parents names are Carole Youmby and Monthe Bautrel. Eh?
It was my understanding that there are several minor arguments for and against male circumcision (generally concerning rare conditions) although naturally it being a cultural practice trumps any amount of facts. There is a sod-all chance of an unbiased appraisal of the data.
I must admit to less sympathy for the parents than WFW (from the information here): they subjected the baby to a surgical procedure that was (apparently) not medically indicated.
If, as well as the parents, the baby had given informed consent to the operation it would have been different matter.
MW -you don't need to travel that far. Rest assured that 'Female Cutting' will be taking place in (e.g.) Britain's Somali community.
MW, I'm well aware of the extreme forms of female circumcision, some of which are truly horrific. I'm also a member of Forward btw.
The lesser forms of female circumcision are very similar to male circumcision though. Some actually do less damage, and one form is the exact equivalent. I debate with mothers who are about to have it done, or have just had it done, and they invariably compare it to male circumcision.
I believe that the fastest way to end female circumcision will be to stop male circumcision at the same time. We just shouldn't be cutting off parts of children's genitals for cultural or cosmetic reasons. Whose body is it anyway?
How tragic and "how unnecessary"
It's time it was outlawed!
I'd like to think that people will learn from this but I fear the message will not be heard. The reported death of a girl in Egypt stoked the call for legislation and an outright ban of female circumcision. But I doubt that would cross most people mind in this case. Perhaps boys don't deserve the same protection as girls. I don't believe that but it seems like that is what the world thinks.
It's striking that the Coroner doesn't seem to have questioned anything to do with the circumcision itself. If the whole operation was unnecessary, wasn't that the primary cause of death?
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