HIV Boy 'Banned From Childcare' | Human Rights Issue... | Stuff.co.nz
The rest of the article can be found by following the link. What do you all think about this? Would you be comfortable with your child, if you have children, attending daycare with an HIV positive child?
The Whangarei childcare centre accused of expelling a boy because he has HIV says the claims are untrue.
The Mokopuna Early Childhood Education and Care Centre - which is run by the He Puna Marama Trust - has been under attack after the New Zealand Aids Foundation (NZAF) said it kicked out a four-year-old child because he was HIV-positive.
But the trust's chief executive Raewyn Tipene today said the centre has not "excluded, expelled, or shut out the child" and many statements made by the NZAF were unfounded.
"We are disappointed at the slanted view put across in the media and the unwarranted attack by the Aids Foundation," she said.
The centre was putting in place a care plan to ensure children received appropriate care, staff were aware of their condition and how best to care if any situation occurred, she said.
"Safety of all the children and staff at the centre is paramount."
Tipene said the centre was working alongside the Ministry of Education to make sure they meet their obligations to the child.
"The trust does not wish to inflame the situation or add to the negativity in the community or have suspicion landed on any other centre," she said.
'NONSENSE'
The man who helped enrol Aids-sufferer Eve van Grafhorst in his Hastings school 26 years ago said the expulsion of an HIV-positive child from the centre was "nonsense".
David Simpson was part of the team that famously accepted van Grafhorst - who became renowned for her brave fight against the virus - to the Rudolf Steiner School in 1986, after she was forced out of a school in Australia.
He said there was "absolutely no reason" why a child with HIV could not attend centre.
"It's a long time ago since we dealt with this situation. We simply educated ourselves. The clear message that we got is that there is no reason to worry at all."
"I think they should be listening to the health professionals and I feel very sorry for this young child who for no reason other than the fact that he's got an unfortunate disease is kept from school," Simpson said.
"Based on our experience, it's nonsense and it shouldn't really be happening."
The rest of the article can be found by following the link. What do you all think about this? Would you be comfortable with your child, if you have children, attending daycare with an HIV positive child?
