2-year-old girl seen by two doctors before she died from ingesting baking soda (she weighed 17 lbs.)

:cry:

Pittsburg girl seen by two doctors before she died
Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, December 21, 2006

(12-21) 12:36 PST MARTINEZ -- A 2-year-old Pittsburg girl who died after ingesting baking soda while under her foster mother's care was seen twice by county health officials in the months before she died, officials said today.

Deonna Green was examined Oct. 20 in the emergency room of Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez, said Dr. Jeff Smith, executive director of county health services. Deonna was brought in by her biological mother, who requested a general medical evaluation, Smith said.

The physician noted that Deonna's weight was about 24 pounds, less than the average weight of a child her size, and scheduled an appointment with a pediatrician for four days later, Smith said. The girl never showed up. "We don't know why she didn't keep the appointment," Smith said at a news conference.

On Nov. 30, Deonna's foster mother, Khareasha Pugh, 22, brought the girl into a county clinic in Pittsburg for a "well-baby" exam. A physician in a temporary position determined that her weight was 19 pounds and again referred Deonna to a pediatrician but didn't report the weight to child-welfare workers, officials said.

snip...
A preliminary coroner's report released this week said Deonna died from ingesting baking soda after Pugh withheld food and liquid from her as punishment for sneaking food. Pugh was given custody of Deonna two months ago.

more...
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/12/21/BAGPTN3RVG35.DTL



Brain-damaged foster child dies
Jason B. Johnson, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, December 14, 2006

(12-14) 07:42 PST OAKLAND -- Deonna Green, the 2-year-old Pittsburg girl who was hospitalized with severe brain damage last week, died at Children's Hospital Oakland Wednesday, officials said this morning.

Deonna's case is being investigated by police and social service workers to determine whether charges should be filed against the child's foster mother and the woman's boyfriend, authorities said.

Deonna had been on life support at Children's Hospital before she passed away, according to officials at the Contra Costa County coroner's office.

Police and emergency personnel responded to a 911 call from the foster mother Dec. 7 at her home on the 100 block of Lou Ann Place and found Deonna unconscious and having difficulty breathing, Pittsburg police Inspector John Conaty said. The girl weighed just 17 pounds.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/12/14/BAGEJMVLQS3.DTL&hw=pugh&sn=005&sc=142

I have no words harsh enough for someone who would punish a 2 year old in this way. I hope that woman is locked up forever.

I had a two year old at that age and I did a pretty good job with him if I do say so myself, but with very young mothers the idiocy to competence ratio is very high, and there's simply no reason to take that risk with children who were likely already the victim of some moran "parent" in order to have would up in foster care.

edit: And to illustrate how small that kid was, leftykid weighed 17 lbs at 3 mos.

holy crap! what was his birth weight?

:hi:

:blush:

He leveled out at about 30 lbs at a year (yes, he was a fat baby,) was about 40 lbs at three (and no longer fat, just solid) and at 5 1/2 he's about 52 lbs and 4 ft tall. He's a big kid, but at this point he's entirely proportionate.

Kids in my family tend to be on the large side when they're young and then stop growing a big before their peers to and wind up average (for the males) or a bit smaller than average (for the females) at adulthood. So far he seems to be following that pattern, though we'll know a little better in a few more years.

And a child being thin is not evidence of a child being neglected. However, any doctor would be able to look at my child's medical records and see that he has stayed on a consistent line on the growth chart for his weight. For that child to go from 24 pounds down to 19 pounds and no one notice is completely negligent on the doctor's part. Someone should have intervened for this child. It's very sad that they didn't.

Don't they screen at all?

A 23 year old with an 8 year old son.
Do the math.

"In a separate child-abuse case in the county, Teresa Marie Moses, 23, of Richmond appeared in Contra Costa County Superior Court today but didn't enter a plea to charges of torture and child endangerment in the Oct. 27 death of her 8-year-old son, Raijon Daniels. Police said Moses kept Raijon in a locked bedroom and that he may have ingested a pine-scented household cleaner.

Prosecutors are awaiting a coroner's report before determining whether to file a murder charge against Moses."

:cry::banghead: