A small boy has been left with severe brain damage after choking on a raw apple slice at his daycare.
Neihana Renata was with his twin sister Aotea at Little Lights Kindy, in Rotorua, on New Zealand’s North Island, when his life changed forever.
He was just 22-months-old when he went from being a bubbly toddler who loved to run and play outside to barely being able to move.
Neihana Renata has been left with severe cerebral palsy after choking on a slice of apple at his daycare
Neihana Renata went from being a bubbly toddler who loved to run and play outside to barely being able to move
A piece of sliced, peeled, raw apple, which was served by the daycare staff, had become lodged in his throat on May 31, 2016 and he stopped breathing.
He was in cardiac arrest for 30 minutes, resulting in severe cerebral palsy.
‘We basically got told we have a boy that can breathe,’ his dad Wi Renata told Sunday.
‘(He was) still, no movements, he could open his eyes but there was nothing there. He could just breathe.’
Neihana was in hospital for two months after the horrific incident.
His mother Marama has had to give up her career as a doctor to care for her son.
Ms Renata doesn’t blame the teachers for what happened but she has raised questions over why raw apple, known as a high-risk food for small children, was given to her son.
She believes more needs to be done to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
The Ministry of Health lists raw apple as a hazard for children under five. It recommends cooking or finely grating apple to avoid choking.
His mother Marama, who is a doctor, got a call from daycare staff saying her son had choked
Neihana Renata (pictured) is unable to walk, talk or swallow normally but he still smiles and laughs
A report by lobby group ChildForum, which was published on Sunday, found that the incident would not have happened had raw apple not been on the menu and provided to the toddler.
The report also found there were discrepancies over how first aid was administered during the incident.
Teachers reported doing a blind finger sweep in the mouth but it was not clear if the Heimlich manoeuvre was used.
The incident did not prompt a review into the effectiveness of first aid training for early education staff.
Dr Sarah Alexander, who wrote the report, has called for the Ministry of Education to tighten its rules around food safety, first aid training and investigations into similar incidents.
WorkSafe investigated the incident and found the centre complied with health and safety regulations.
In a statement from Evolve Education Group chief executive Rosanne Graham said they were continuing to support their teachers at the centre who were impacted by this traumatic event.
‘Investigations into the incident by the Ministry of Education and Worksafe found that the teachers at Little Lights had responded appropriately, using their first aid training, to attempt to prevent serious repercussions, even though these did occur,’ Ms Graham.
Evolve Education Group had co-operated fully with investigators to ensure a full understanding of what occurred could be reached.
She said the company had reviewed its food policy in the wake of the accident.
Evolve’s policy now does not allow apple or equivalent hard vegetables/fruit to be given to children under three years unless it is peeled and grated, peeled and cooked or peeled and pureed/mashed.
Katrina Casey, Deputy Secretary Sector Enablement and Support for the ministry, said WorkSafe NZ’s report showed the centre followed first aid and supervision guidelines, had suitably trained staff and called emergency services immediately.
‘Staff at the centre did all they could to help this little boy,’ she said.
‘The centre communicated to its parents about this event the day after it occurred and we supported them in this.
‘Following WorkSafe NZ’s investigation we worked with WorkSafe NZ to review our guidelines.
‘We concluded that our existing guidelines for keeping children safe while eating were clear and fit for purpose.
‘We reinforced the importance, more generally, of closely supervising children in our guidelines on hazard management. We communicated this to the sector through our early learning bulletin in May 2017.’
The Ministry of Health lists raw apple as a hazard for children under five. It recommends cooking or finely grating apple to avoid choking