We live in an age where there is increased awareness regarding the security of new mothers and their babies, which is why we are so shocked to hear that there are still reports of swapped baby cases around the world.
Undoubtedly one of the most high-profile cases from the past few years is that of Richard Cushworth and Mercedes Casenellas, whose son Moses was accidentally swapped shortly after birth.
The couple welcomed their son in Mercedes’ native El Salvador, but were given the wrong child going home the following day.
After being reunited with their biological tot eight months ago, there is yet more great news for the parents this week: they have finally been able to travel back home to the United States with their biological son.
Mercedes gave birth back in May 2015, and she raised her concerns over the identity of the child the following day, when she was preparing to leave hospital. With nurses assuring her that the baby was indeed hers, she and husband Richard travelled back to their home in Texas.
Still not convinced that the baby was really theirs, Mercedes and Richard ordered DNA tests – only to find out there was a 0% chance that the tot was their own.
Naturally, the revelation was devastating, as the mother told the BBC: "The thought that the baby I had been nursing, taken care of, loving him, bathing him, that he was not mine...and then I had another thought which came with it - where's my baby? So, I had two thoughts: ‘what's going to happen with this baby?’ and ‘where's my baby?’”
The family were reunited with their biological son eight months ago, but the hard part was yet to come – they had to sort out the paperwork to bring Moses home. The couple went on to spend the past eight months working on getting a birth certificate for their son, with the process reportedly almost making them bankrupt.
We’re wishing the family all the best as they begin the next chapter of their lives together.
