Confused babies and who is who has been the big talk in Herøy recently. news recently told about Mona, who was changed in the delivery room at Eggesbønes in the 60s. Subsequently, one after the other has contacted the municipality. A total of 14 families will be involved. – This has clearly become a big topic of conversation lately. Firstly, people are starting to think about whether some of them have been affected by it, and secondly, there is no hiding the fact that there has been a lot of discussion about who the change has happened to, says Olaug Andreassen. She is the leader of the Herøy sanitary association, which ran maternity hospitals in the 1950s and 1960s together with the public health system. Olaug Andreassen is the leader of the Herøy sanitation association. She does not understand what is the cause of all the issues that are now appearing. Photo: Øyvind Berge Sæbjørnsen / news Seven cases in the 50s and 60s It is the case of Mona that has the most attention. news recently told about the woman who only discovered after 60 years that she did not grow up with her biological family. But it now turns out that there have been a number of short-term changes in the delivery room at Eggesbønes – both before and after: 1952: Gerald Pettersen is said to have been mistaken for someone else in the delivery room. According to Pettersen, the mother had to fight to have her own son. 1953: Two babies are said to have been transferred to the wrong mother during breastfeeding. Both mothers are said to have discovered the change and protested. 1955: The wrong baby is said to have been dressed in baby clothes when the mother was going home from the maternity ward. The change must have been discovered before they left the delivery room. 1958: A baby boy is said to have been transferred to the wrong mother during breastfeeding. According to the municipality, this mother also protested immediately, because she did not recognize the girl she had given birth to. 1963: A baby is said to have been born to the wrong mother, thus causing a short-term confusion. 1966: A mother allegedly discovered that she had given birth to an unknown baby. At that time, it was common for the babies to lie in one room together, while the mothers slept. For food and care, the children were brought in to the mothers. It is in such situations that several of the changes must have taken place. The big topic of conversation in Herøy recently has been the changing of babies in the delivery room. Photo: Øyvind Berge Sæbjørnsen / news Will not answer questions After the story about Mona became known, news has received tips about a series of baby swaps across the country. Most of them are short-lived, but some are also longer. news has asked the Ministry of Health and Social Care to answer, among other things, whether the cases should now be investigated and whether measures should be put in place to prevent something similar from happening today. The ministry does not answer the questions specifically, but write that we can quote State Secretary Karl Kristian Bekeng as follows: – I have great understanding and respect for the fact that those involved in the case find this very burdensome and serious. We have now received a notice of legal action and will carry out a thorough review of the case. At the present time, I cannot therefore make further comments, writes State Secretary Karl Kristian Bekeng. State Secretary Karl Kristian Bekeng (Ap) does not answer whether the ministry will now start an investigation into the baby changes. Photo: Esten Borgos / BORGOS FOTO AS Denies that it was done on purpose Municipal director Trond Arne Aglen in Herøy has had a hectic time after the replacement cases started to appear. He understands that people question whether the changes may have happened on purpose, because there are so many people in a birthing room. Aglen rejects this, and says it could have happened anywhere. He says the municipality’s investigations indicate that none of the babies were marked. He says it shows that it was a different time. – I would assume that the time was the same elsewhere in the country as well. It would surprise me if there weren’t similar stories elsewhere in the country, he says. Municipal director Trond Arne Aglen says that all cases are now reported directly to the Directorate of Health and the Ministry of Health and Care. Municipal director Trond Arne Aglen says the municipality reports all cases directly to the Directorate of Health and the Ministry of Health and Care. Photo: Øyvind Berge Sæbjørnsen / news news has previously written that Mona is demanding millions in compensation because neither the municipality nor the state told her about the change. Hope it’s over soon For the sanitation women in Herøy, there have been difficult days. Manager Olaug Andreassen personally knows several of those involved in the changes. She confirms that there were worse routines for marking newborns and few employees in the delivery room in the 50s and 60s. She still has difficulty understanding what has happened. – I hope that everyone can help so that we get the facts on the table and can close the case now. And not that we have to do another round later, because we haven’t got everything out this time, she says. news has asked the municipality to contact employees who previously worked at the maternity ward. Neither of them wishes to comment on the case.
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at least seven babies must be mixed up in the delivery room at Eggesbønes in Herøy – news Møre og Romsdal – Local news, TV and radio
