In 2019, tragedy struck when three-week-old Harvey McGlinn suffocated to death while being carried in a sling. The infant boy was found immobile and colorless at a community health service on the NSW Central Coast after his mother, Tattika Dunn, untied the sling she was wearing. Despite the staff’s best efforts to revive him with CPR, Harvey could not be saved.
According to the coroner’s conclusions, Harvey’s neck posture, with his chin on his chest, obstructed his airway, leading to suffocation. The researchers speculated that his low weight and reduced muscular and head control may have contributed to the problem of keeping a patent airway from the way Harvey was placed in the sling.
After the death of the infant, the coroner noted that NSW Health changed its guidance on the hazards of infant slings. The product came with a choking warning and an instruction leaflet that stated newborns should be held upright in the device with their chin off their parents’ chest. However, Ms. Dunn refused to participate in the inquiry, and there was no evidence that she broke her obligation of care. Both the health center employees and the product maker were likewise exonerated.
Following Harvey’s tragic death, the TICKS abbreviation was created to help other parents avoid similar tragedies. The acronym stands for Tight, In view, Close, Keep chin off chest, and Supported, providing parents with an easy-to-remember checklist for safe baby-wearing.
While NSW Health’s director of maternity, child and family, Deborah Matha, stated at the inquiry that prohibiting slings was the only way to entirely minimize the danger, doing so would be nearly impossible due to cultural and disability reasons for women using slings. Nonetheless, educating parents about safe baby-wearing practices is crucial to prevent such accidents in the future.