New Zealand: custody of a sick baby withdrawn from his parents who refused "vaccinated blood"

The Auckland High Court has ordered six-month-old 'Baby W' to be placed under partial guardianship while undergoing emergency surgery for a heart condition called valvular stenosis.

His parents had opposed this intervention, demanding that the blood which could be transfused in the operating theater come from donors who had not received any messenger RNA vaccine against Covid-19.

"The overriding question is whether the proposed treatment is in (the baby's) best interests," the court said in a statement.

The baby is now under the "medical supervision of the Court" until "the end of his operation" and his recovery, at the latest at the end of January.

Parents retain authority over the child except for medical care.

They will be "informed at all reasonable times of the nature of the treatment given to + Baby W + and of the evolution of his condition", according to the judgment.

This case shocked the country and underscored the significant misinformation surrounding vaccination.

Health agency spokesman Mike Shepherd said this is "a difficult situation for everyone involved".

“The decision to make a request like this to the court is always taken taking into account the best interests of the child,” he stressed.

The baby is being treated at a children's hospital in Auckland.

When the court decision was announced, anti-vaccine activist Liz Gunn asked the few people who came to support the family to put pressure on Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to reverse her decision.

Health authorities had rejected the parents' request for "unvaccinated blood", arguing that it was impractical and unnecessary.

Hospitals do not separate the blood donated by vaccinated people from that of unvaccinated people, neither category presenting more risks than the other.

The family says they have dozens of unvaccinated donors waiting.

"This is a really unusual case where the parents want better treatment for their child than what the state is offering," said Sue Grey, the parents' lawyer, in November.

"We are there because we have a government and a blood bank... (who) do not want to make these services available," she said.

© 2022 AFP