Mother demands change to privacy laws

An Auckland mother has slammed privacy laws and called for a law change because doctors wouldn't give her contact details for her 15-year-old daughter, who had run away from home but had a serious kidney condition.

Emma Kelland ran away from Auckland on November 22 after a family argument and in early December went to a medical centre in Te Awamutu.

The medical centre notified Emma's doctor in Auckland, who told her parents.

But the centre in Te Awamutu wouldn't give Andrew and Cathy Kelland their girl's contact details, citing the Privacy Act.

When Emma was eventually found by Otara police on January 27, she was bedridden, dehydrated and had been too sick to eat for four days.

She had been staying with a 17-year-old youth and his father but was taken into the care of Child, Youth and Family.

Cathy Kelland does not think the actions of the medical centre were right.

"We just couldn't believe it that she'd been seeking medical help and yet nobody seemed to want to help us to find her," she told National Radio.

She said the law should be changed so the parents of minors could find their children.

"If somebody's under the age of 16 and has gone missing like in our case and we didn't know anything - where she was or who she was living with - there should be laws to change that.

"We just don't think it's good enough. We went through two months of hell."

However, Emma said the medical centre was right not to hand out her details - she was old enough to take care of herself.

- NZPA