On Tuesday, November 29, paramedics had to administer Narcan, a drug used to treat acute opioid poisoning, to a 10-month-old baby after he accidentally overdosed on fentanyl while playing in a park in San Francisco.
This was announced by Ivan Matkovic, the minor's father, in an interview with The Chronicle, who also shared the hospital report confirming the "accidental overdose of fentanyl, initial contact" followed by "respiratory arrest."
According to the document, which the outlet was able to corroborate, the record states that the baby was observed for “over 6 hours since being administered Narcan and is breathing well. The fentanyl should be out of his system. He is safe to go home.”
By Wednesday, the news was already making its way through social media, with residents and local officials highlighting the city's deep drug crisis.
San Francisco District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey said on Twitter that if the 10-month-old baby is confirmed to have ingested fentanyl at a local park, “it should be another wake-up call in San Francisco’s worst public health calamity since the AIDS crisis: the status quo in our drug crisis is unsustainable.”
"Thank God this child survived, but not every child who comes into contact with fentanyl is so lucky," Dorsey said, noting that in 2019, federal officials filed murder charges against Tenderloin dealers who sold fentanyl and killed a 13-month-old child and his father.
“I’m frankly unaware of the fentanyl issue,” Matkovic said in a phone interview Wednesday. “I’m just a parent who had something bad happen to them. I just wanted people to know that along with coyotes and RSV and COVID, this is another thing you need to add to your checklist of things you need to be looking out for, because we’re not.”
According to the outlet, Matkovic told them she was working from home on Tuesday when her babysitter, who was with her twins at the park, called. “One of your kids isn’t breathing right,” she recalled her telling her. He left immediately, then she called back, saying he’s turning blue; I’m going to administer CPR and call 911.”
When Matkovic arrived at the grassy area next to one of Moscone Park’s playgrounds on Chestnut Street within 10 minutes, her son was not moving but had a pulse and some color. Paramedics hovered over the baby, holding a mask connected to a breathing apparatus over her son’s mouth, she said.
Paramedics placed the 10-month-old baby on a stretcher and loaded him into the back of an ambulance. They asked Matkovic questions about her son’s medical history and weight, and seeing that nothing was obstructing her son’s ability to breathe, they administered Narcan. Within seconds, the baby began crying and breathing again, Matkovic said.
The baby's father reported that his babysitter told him his son was crawling through the grass, putting leaves in his mouth, as he often does, and that she did not see what the baby touched, ingested or inhaled, nor did she notice any drugs, aluminum foil or needles.
Spokespeople for police and the Department of Recreation and Parks said they found no drugs or paraphernalia after searching the park that night. Matkovic said police told him the most likely exposure was dust, which is difficult to detect.
Matkovic said she had no reason to believe her babysitter, whom the family has employed for about half a year, or anyone else at the park had fentanyl or gave it to the boy. Instead, she praised the quick actions of the babysitter and paramedics.
Young children have died, and some have survived, after accidentally ingesting fentanyl, according to a national study that looked at 25 cases from 2004 to 2013. Twelve cases were fatal, including the youngest case involving a 1-year-old. Children as young as 2 survived. Most cases occurred in children between the ages of 2 and 4.
The complete note can be consulted at The Chronicle.
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