Portlaoise switch caused heartbreak

The fear of the changeling child is as strong in Irish legend as in any other folkloric tradition, but could swapping of children intrude into modern Ireland? It already has.

On August 26th, 1986, Mrs Assumpta Broomfield of Co Laois gave birth to a boy, in Portlaoise General Hospital. The baby was taken from her briefly to allow her to rest. Soon afterwards, an infant was brought to her to breastfeed. This child was not hers.

Although Mrs Broomfield was at once suspicious that this boy was not in fact her own, each of the mothers concerned took home the other's son. It was 10 days before the mistake was acknowledged by the hospital, by means of what was then called "scientific testing". The boys were then reunited with their natural parents, under distressing circumstances. Mrs Broomfield had continued to breastfeed the wrong child. When the case came to court in November 1990, it attracted widespread coverage. Justice MacKenzie, in awarding the Broomfields £35,000, said that there was no precedent for their case. In evidence, Mrs Broomfield said she would have liked to bring both children home. She also said at the time that she felt she would never be happy again. She donated most of her settlement to Father Peter McVerry's hostel for homeless boys. When contacted earlier this week, she declined to make any comment about that 1986 mix up by Portlaoise General Hospital.

Holles Street, the National Maternity Hospital, is the largest in the country. What is their procedure for identifying new-born babies? "We label them before the cord is cut," says Matron Maeve Dwyer. "The label carries the name of the mother and her hospital number, the date of birth and the sex of the baby. Since more and more fathers are now coming into the delivery room, it's usually the case that both parents check the labels before the bracelets are put on the baby."

Two plastic bracelets are put on each baby. The current trend at Holles Street is to put them on either wrist. "The fasteners are made so that once they're opened, they can't be closed again." Babies' cots are also labelled. In all, the labels on the bracelets are checked three times in the first hour of birth: before the cord is cut; before the baby leaves the delivery room; and when the baby gets to the delivery ward.

The plastic bracelets have been in use "as long I've been in midwifery," Matron Walsh says, and adds that the identification process at other maternity hospitals in Ireland is similar to Holles Street.

There is currently a more sophisticated form of identity bracelet being used in American hospitals. These are fitted with electronic devices which set off alarms if anyone tries to remove the child.

How long do the bracelets stay on the baby? "Until they go out the door," says Matron Walsh. "But ideally, the biggest and best form of security is that the baby stays by the mother's side at all times when in hospital."