Every day, with every decision made, we weigh up risk.
Is it too soon to let my child play with lego? They might choke.
Is it too soon for my child to go swimming independently? What if something happens in the water?
Is it okay for my child to walk to the corner store for some milk? What if someone snatches them into their car?
Is it time to change the car seat from rear to front facing? They might die.
That’s not hyperbole. That a child might die in a front facing seat is a very real possibility, and it is the lived experience of Mudgee woman, Angela Brown.
Earlier today, Angela posted photos of her almost two year old daughter who has been a patient at Westmead Hospital since late February.
Angela writes, “On the 26th of February my happy world shattered and I woke up to my new nightmare life.”
At 100kms an hour, Angela’s car slammed into a tree. The car flipped and landed upside down, while the impact on the tree caused it to crash on top of the SUV.
Angela’s two-year-old daughter, in her front facing seat had a large cut on her forehead. Angela’s baby, in her rear facing seat had no visible sign of injury.
Eventually, after the family was picked up by Careflight and transferred to Westmead, Angela’s two year old daughter was diagnosed with a broken c2 and c3 (that is, she had broken vertebrae) and had torn the ligaments in her c1.
