A five-year-old schoolboy was jabbed by a heroin addict’s needle which was thrown into his school’s play area minutes before break time yesterday.
The child, who attends North Presentation primary school on the north side of Cork City, picked it up unaware of the danger and was jabbed in the hand, puncturing his skin.
Principal Kathleen Haverty said teachers became aware of the incident immediately, contacted the boy’s parents, and a member of staff accompanied them to the Mercy University Hospital where the boy underwent a series of tests.
He and his family now face an anxious wait for results to see if he has contracted any diseases from the dirty needle.
That anxious wait is where the trouble starts. The child’s parents and extended family, the school staff and other parents who have children at that school will all now fear the consequences of this injury, irrespective of what we must hope will be a safe and uneventful period of vigilance without the horrors of bloodborne virus infection.