MANILA -- Citing children's vulnerability to injuries, physical or otherwise, a pediatrician on Tuesday assailed parents of the toddler, who was left all alone inside an SUV in Pasig City, saying such action may have life-long implications on the child.
"A child is always vulnerable to injury. Our attention as adult should always be on them," said Dr. Dexter Aison, pediatric surgeon from Philippine Children's Medical Center, during a health forum organized by the Philippine College of Physicians in Quezon City.
Aison was reacting to the video uploaded by a netizen on social media, showing a child locked inside an SUV parked near a bar in Pasig crying.
The child's mother later reportedly said she was not away for a long time when she left her child.
Aison added that parents of the two-year-old child should have considered a number of things that can possibly happen to the child such as suffocation, trauma, and worst, even death.
He also warned on the possibility that the trauma experienced by the child can manifest in later years.
“One of the possible psychological effects to a child is developing claustrophobia, which we cannot see until it manifests later on,” the physician added.
Claustrophobia is defined as the fear of being enclosed in a small space or room and unable to escape.
On the other hand, he said suffocation may happen due to the absence of air inside the enclosed vehicle.
Aison said this is because even if the engine is running, the fumes of the car may poison the child as it gets into the vehicle.
"So there are things that we don't think about. All we know is sometimes because they are there (inside the car), we will not lose them," he said.
He said limiting the child's movement was actually a form of abuse.
“That is a form of child abuse, in my opinion... That is not right,” he added.
Aison advised parents and guardians, who need to attend to something important, they can leave the child with their relatives instead of leaving them in a confined area by themselves.
"You can actually choose to entrust your children to your grandparents," he said.
He also said many advocates of children rights can push for the creation of local ordinances that will establish child minding or daycare centers in communities and in the workplace working parents. (PNA)
