Tag

National Screening Unit

How much is your child worth?

Do you have a loved one with Down syndrome? Have you ever wondered how much they are worth? $74,768.91 Give or take a bit in kiwi dollars – that’s 38,000 British Pounds at today’s exchange rate. That’s according to this report for the New Zealand National Screening Unit (NSU) th
Read More

PRESS RELEASE: Important win secured with revised screening guidelines

Important win secured with revised screening guidelines Saving Downs has secured a number of important and welcome changes to the national screening programme for Down syndrome. Last week new guidelines were formally issued by the National Screening Unit. These were revised following
Read More

Saving Downs secures important win with revised screening guidelines

Mike Sullivan bio
Last week new guidelines for screening for Down syndrome in New Zealand were formally issued by the National Screening Unit. These consist of a leaflet for pregnant women and their partners and detailed guidelines for Health Practitioners. These have both been revised following the up
Read More

2012: An awesome year for Saving Downs

It has been an awesome year for our social justice advocacy at Saving Downs, so this blog is all about celebration and praise for the great work. In reflecting on what we have achieved, I am reminded of the reality that all great social justice causes take a long time to evolve, and s
Read More

Down syndrome screening – seeing eugenics through the fog

  Last month Saving Downs held the “Loving Every Child: Defying Eugenics” seminar. Dr Deirdre Little gave an outstanding presentation on ‘Current practice and how it links with eugenics’.  She gave a very detailed, scientific breakdown of what is really going on with routine ante
Read More

Down syndrome: The New Zealand eugenics programme

There has been some interesting blogs going around objecting to Saving Downs using the term “eugenics” in relation to antenatal screening for Down syndrome. So, what’s really going here and how did we arrive at a government-funded eugenics programme in New Zealand in 2010? Firstly, I
Read More

Screening for Down Syndrome: Is it therapeutic?

There has been a bit of discussion going on around the place about screening for Down Syndrome having a therapeutic benefit. So what is the situation here in New Zealand? Firstly, Saving Downs position is outlined in our Mission Statement: To ensure that antenatal screening exists onl
Read More

PRESS RELEASE: Down syndrome screening refocus is a step in the right direction says Saving Downs

SavingDowns is encouraged by a refocus from the National Screening Unit (NSU) away from the routine offering of screening for Down syndrome to all pregnant women to simply advising them of the availability of screening. The previously mandated offering of screening sent an implicit me
Read More