Today was a frustrating day at work, mainly because a mother decided to abscond from the hospital with her child. The girl was a pretty tight bronchiolitic who was still receiving oxygen, as well as nebulizer treatments every three hours; the mom had been itching to take her daughter home, and had made that fact known to everyone. Two different doctors had explained to her how important it was for her daughter to remain in the hospital, apparently to no avail. To top it off, the mother left decoy belongings in the room to make it appear that they hadn’t truly left — a purse (which was empty), a few scarves (but no jackets or blankets), and a few personal items of food.

I doubt that this mother understood exactly what she was starting when she decided to leave with her daughter, but as far as I understand, there’s now a warrant out for her arrest, and given that the child is young and requires medical attention, there are a significant number of New York City’s Finest out on the streets looking for the family. There’s also an open case with the Administration for Child Services for medical neglect, something which rarely ends well for parents who demonstrate that they aren’t concerned about the health of their babies.