Early childhood education is crucial for children’s development, and nurseries have been key pieces in that process. The idea of caring for the little ones is not something recent; since ancient civilizations, the family was the main nucleus of childcare. However, the Industrial Revolution drastically changed work and family dynamics, making it necessary to create spaces dedicated exclusively to the care of children.
But what happens when reality is far from ideal? That’s what happened to Yohana and Rodolfo, who were lovingly expecting their baby Ángel Jariel de Jesús Figari. “Everything was happy because he was a much-awaited child, we were looking for him,” says Yohana, the baby’s mother. Ángel, at just five months old, was a much-desired gift for the couple; Yohana already had an 11-year-old son, while for Rodolfo it was his first baby.
The joy of knowing he was expecting a child was, for Rodolfo, “the biggest surprise of his life,” as no one had announced the news to him before. Ángel was enrolled in the care of the Cristocéntrico Baptist School, a place close to his jobs, so his parents visited him frequently.
On Thursday the 23rd of the current year, it seemed like a common day. Yohana remembers the daily routine with her son before dropping him off at daycare: she fed him, changed him, and said goodbye, without imagining that it would be the last time she would see his smile. Later, at 1:01 p.m., she received a call that lasted only eight seconds and that would change her life forever. The daycare informed her that Ángel had taken ill and was in the hospital, but upon arrival, the reality was devastating: her son had passed away.
Another case that marked oblivion
It is not the only painful case. In Santo Domingo Este, little Franyeli Elizabeth, only four months old, also died under someone else’s care. This girl, highly desired for being the only woman in the family, was entrusted to Milagros López Lucas, who had previously cared for her other children. On Thursday, February 15, her father took her to a daycare center that operates in a private home, but at noon he received the worst surprise: Milagros handed Franyeli over dead.
In the Dominican Republic, there are both public and private childcare modalities, and both should have clear protocols to avoid tragedies. The National Institute for Comprehensive Care for Early Childhood (INAIPI), which administers the public modality, monitors through cameras to observe the children in real time and act in the face of any eventuality. However, the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), in charge of control in other daycare centers, still does not have clear regulations to adequately supervise infants. According to Samir Saba, CONANI spokesperson, they are working on the regulation, although there is no defined date for its implementation. “That habilitation record that corresponds to CONANI will begin to be applied when the regulations establish the necessary mechanisms to exercise those attributions,” explains Saba, making it clear that the supervision is still insufficient to guarantee the safety of the children.
