Children in hospital after swallowing pills
The children, ranging in age from 2 to 5 years, found pills lying in an open area in Ntshawini.
EIGHT children who found and ate tablets that were lying around, have been hospitalised.
The KZN Emergency Medical Rescue Services (EMRS) paramedics from Stanger, received a call from the Ntshawini area on Sunday afternoon.
Family members of the children, three girls and five boys, ranging in age from two to five years of age called the EMRS after finding the children playing with empty packets of anti-epileptic medication.
The children had apparently found the packets lying in an open area, near where they were staying.
The paramedics examined the children and despite not being able to determine exactly how much of the medication the children had ingested, the children were fortunately found to be in a stable condition.
The paramedics treated the children and monitored them closely en-route to hospital.
The children remained stable and were handed over to the medical staff at Stanger Hospital, for further medical care.
The incident is being investigated as to how the children obtained the medication.
Safe guarding medication
All medication must be kept out of the reach of children and children need to be taught never to ingest or play with medication they may find.
It is also advisable to never store several types of tablets in one container, but keep the tablets in their original, labelled containers.
Expiry dates need to be checked and returned to a clinic, hospital or pharmacy for correct and safe disposal.
Do not flush expired medication down a toilet or throw it into a rubbish bin.
