Babies Go Home 2 Weeks After Hospital Mix-Up
A baby born at an El Monte hospital last month was accidentally sent home with the wrong parents, but officials said Monday that the mix-up had been sorted out.
Two boys were born Sept. 22 at Greater El Monte Community Hospital, and officials said one was sent home with the wrong parents but returned to the hospital two days later. But it wasn’t until Monday--a few days after a battery of blood testing and typing results were verified--that his rightful parents were able to take him home for good.
“If there’s any good news here, it’s that the other child was [never] discharged” from the hospital last month, said Brandon Edwards, a spokesman for Greater El Monte Community Hospital.
The problem happened when “two nurses involved in discharging children did not follow the proper procedure,” Edwards said.
He explained that babies are given wrist and ankle bracelets soon after birth, and that the numbers on the bracelets correspond to those on parents’ bracelets.
After some more genetic detective work, the hospital was able to put the right child with the right parents Friday, and both youngsters went home Monday.
The names of the parents were withheld.
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