There are few things more disturbing than when a child has been molested or intentionally harmed, but what if the allegations are all based on a misdiagnosis or faulty lab test?
That’s what happened to one family, whose world was turned upside down after an urgent care visit in April.
A concerned mother from the Atlanta metro area took her 5-year-old daughter to an urgent care clinic in the Atlanta suburb of College Park because the child wasn’t feeling well. As part of her checkup, the staff took a urine sample and sent it to a lab for analysis. The results showed the 5-year-old had tested positive for multiple STDs — trichomoniasis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia, according to local news station Fox 5.
Suspicious of the results, the mother wanted a second opinion, but unfortunately, she didn’t get one fast enough.
Though her daughter later tested negative for all STDs at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, CPS had already been alerted based on the prior findings. By law, all health care providers are required to notify authorities of suspected abuse, and the clinic reported the family to the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services. The mother, who remains anonymous, feared the worst: that she would lose her daughter or face questionable criminal charges. Soon, the police were knocking on her door.
She recalled the terrifying ordeal to Fox 5: “I couldn’t even breathe when they came to my house,” she said. “I was really thinking like they’re about to take my child away from me. I knew I was the best mom and nothing happened to her.”
The experience also took a toll on her daughter, who was confused by the police presence and subsequent physical exam, too young to understand the full impact of what was happening. In an emotional interview with the outlet, the mother said, “My daughter is 5 and you don’t want to put those kind of things on a 5-year-old. She’s still wondering why did that happen to her. Why did the doctor and the police come, why was she looked at down there?”
Now, the family is seeking justice. Their attorneys are conducting their own investigation into the clinic and the third-party lab in Texas, allegedly responsible for the false results.
Attorney Stephen Fowler told the outlet, “We’re still looking for results and answers and responses, but what we’ve seen so far, there is evidence of some serious concerns of the handling of this child’s health care.”
One misdiagnosis can put a parent in prison. Many in the medical field would like to enact additional safeguards, such as requiring a second physician to assess patients to minimize the risk of bias, as well as follow-up tests when the initial results point to abuse, such as in this case, where a 5-year-old tested positive for multiple STDs.
For now, the mother wants to raise awareness that healthcare providers sometimes make serious mistakes. “I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.”
