Four-year-old Maple Ridge child pokes himself with discarded needle

It was a moment that changed Melissa Cook and her son Kesler’s life.

“I’m just worried,” she says.

“I go through my ups and downs. I have good days and I have angry days.”

It was last week that Kesler Wied poked himself with a bloody discarded needle when playing outside her mom’s Maple Ridge apartment.

Wied, just four years old, will now have to go extensive medical tests for the next year.

“My main concern is anything he might have picked up. We need to test him every three months for the next year. He also has to get an IV put in him every three months and have three vials of blood taken from him,” she says.

Maple Ridge Mayor Nicole Read says residents are increasingly concerned over used and discarded needles being found in open areas.

“Fraser Health has not adequately attended to this. Ultimately, we need a better plan, because something is obviously broken in our community for a child to pick up a needle,” she said.

It’s a worry that has echoed throughout various municipalities in the Lower Mainland. Vancouver Coastal Health says in 2015, they recovered more than 250,700 needles in sweeps throughout Vancouver. Fraser Health says it’s also on board with ensuring the safety of those within its borders.

“Fraser Health is working with the community and municipality to advocate for more community disposal boxes,” said Dr. Ingrid Tyler, Fraser Health’s Medical Health Officer.

“We do regular sweeps with community partners in public places and pick up any needles that are found.”

– With files from Jennifer Palma