Indoor playgrounds go to great lengths to create safe spaces for children. Despite their best efforts, mishaps may still be unavoidable.
On Saturday (18 Sep), Facebook user Mr Liew claimed that his 6-year-old son had gotten a pebble stuck in his ear after visiting an indoor playground.
He later took the child to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) to remove the foreign object.
Much like most parents, Mr Liew took his son to a local indoor playground for a fun experience. His child eventually played in an area with a soft artificial sandpit and toys including a mini play kitchen.
The trouble began when a pebble ended up inside the young boy’s ear.
Perhaps unable to retrieve the foreign object himself, Mr Liew took his son to KKH, where he allegedly had to fork out $1,000 for medical staff to take out the pebble.
Fortunately, the operation was a success. Mr Liew revealed the tiny bloodstained object, allegedly taken out of his child’s earhole.
While he seemingly didn’t make any requests with the indoor playground management, he stated in his Facebook post that that would be his last visit there.
MS News has reached out to the indoor playground for comments and will update the article accordingly when they get back.
Since parents often take their kids to indoor playgrounds, this incident sparked concerns among some netizens.
One confirmed that the object stuck inside the child’s ear is called a Hinoki bead. These are common fillers and play materials in playgrounds.
Sympathising with Mr Liew’s traumatic experience, the netizen suggested that he keep a closer eye on his son as young kids tend to place unknown objects into various cavities.
Pebbled areas are common in indoor playgrounds, according to another netizen. Unlike sand, it doesn’t bounce and a child may unknowingly get the object inside their body. However, the commenter claimed parents must monitor their children at all times and not let the playground take the full blame.
One netizen wished the child a speedy recovery. Ultimately, she believed indoor playgrounds are not childcare centres. Parents must always watch their children in public spaces.
Indoor playgrounds are venues where children can have fun with interesting toys and unique environments.
While they’re usually designed to be safe, parents should always monitor their children. Small objects can be a hazard for young kids who have a tendency to place things in their mouths or anywhere else that they’re not supposed to.
Hopefully, this incident will remind parents to remain vigilant at all times.
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Featured image adapted from Facebook.
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