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Parent: Day care investigated for giving kids melatonin

By Liz Foster
By Liz Foster

LINCOLN COUNTY, N.C. — Ms. Em's Child Development Center is being investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services after accusations that a day care worker was giving melatonin to children, a parent told Channel 9.
 
A case worker notified a Lincoln County mother whose child goes to the day care, according to the mother, who did not want to be identified.
 
"They said that a parent reported one teacher giving kids melatonin to help them nap," the mother said. "They said they were putting it in the milk."
 
Melatonin is an over-the-counter supplement that comes in pills and other forms to help people sleep.
 
"I'm putting my child's life in your hands and you're going to do something like that without my consent? It'd be one thing if they had my consent, but they didn't," the mother said.
 
The day care owner said she's been in business for 10 years and has never given a child any medicine without a doctor's note.
 
She also said she was not aware of any of her employees giving children medicine without a doctor's consent.
 
Details on the investigation into the day care have not been released, and officials would not specify whether it was related to the mother's claims.
 
"DHHS is conducting an investigation into this facility," DHHS spokeswoman Olivia James said in an email. "Details surrounding an investigation are not disclosed until it is complete."
 
Meanwhile, the Lincoln County mother said she won't take her child back to the day care.
 
Another mother said she is has also stopped taking her children to the day care.
 
There has been no action taken against the day care's current license number or location in the last three years, according to the state's database.

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