Baby abused to death by parents was not referred to child protection or social services: MSF

SINGAPORE — Trevor Neo, the eight-month-old baby who died after being abused by his parents, was not referred to the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s (MSF) Protective Service or any social service agency for abuse concerns before his death.

The infant had been admitted to the KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) from Jan 18 to 23, 2024, for vomiting, drinking less milk and concerns about being shaken by his mother.

His parents had agreed to follow a care plan drawn up by the hospital after Trevor was discharged.

KKH’s medical board chairman Eileen Lew told The Straits Times on Oct 21 that the hospital had continued to follow up on Trevor’s case after his discharge, including facilitating access to services for parenting and child development support for his parents.

She added: “With no outstanding concerns, the case was eventually closed.”

Lew did not provide details of the care plan or indicate how long KKH followed up with the case before closing it.

MSF and Lew were responding to ST’s questions regarding Trevor’s case after his parents were sentenced on Oct 21.

Neo Jia Ming, 27, was sentenced to 16 years’ jail, while Chloe Gan Ci Xuan, 23, was sentenced to 15 years and three months’ jail.

For most of Trevor’s short life, he was hit, shaken or even had his mouth and nose covered by his parents. He eventually died in September 2024 after his mother smothered him, hit him in the face and turned him face down on the mattress to stop his cries.

MSF told ST it appointed an independent review panel for Trevor’s case to identify lessons and recommend further improvements to the child protection system.

“The review highlighted the need for professionals to better recognise and respond to concerns involving infants and young children, and to coordinate support when families come into contact with different services,” said an MSF spokesperson.

These lessons have been shared across the social, healthcare and early childhood sectors, the spokesperson added.

MSF appointed the independent review panel even though Trevor died in 2024, before the ministry said in November 2025 that all child deaths known to social services would be independently reviewed.

The move came after the tragic death of Megan Khung, the four-year-old girl who was abused to death by her mother and her former partner.

In her case, there were multiple breaches across agencies, including a Child Protective Service officer who failed to log a call by Megan’s pre-school seeking help and police officers not following processes.

What happened in hospital

KKH’s Lew gave more details on what happened during Trevor’s two hospital visits before he died.

The first time was on Jan 18, 2024, when he was about a month old. That day, Gan had shaken the infant while Neo was at work, and went back to sleep after Trevor became unconscious.

Later, when Trevor did not respond as she tried to feed him, she exchanged text messages with Neo about the incident.

Neo then brought him to the KKH, which conducted “thorough evaluations”, including a brain scan, eye examination and X-rays.

The infant was found normal, with no injuries or reported loss of consciousness, said Lew, adding that his parents had agreed to follow the hospital’s care plans.

The second visit was on April 2, 2024. Some time on or before this date, Neo had put his hand into Trevor’s mouth and dug around until the child bled under his tongue.

After the baby’s nanny noticed the injury and insisted that Trevor be seen by a doctor, Neo and Gan brought him to KKH.

KKH’s Lew said the doctor who examined Trevor that day found he was well, with no tear or bleeding under the tongue. The infant was discharged on the same day.

Neo and Gan had mentioned that Trevor liked to suck on his hands and fingers, added Lew.

“His parents sought medical attention promptly, (were) cooperative and provided accounts consistent with the clinical findings,” she added.

Five months later, on Sept 2, 2024, Trevor was brought to the hospital in an unresponsive state. He died despite attempts to resuscitate him. Hospital staff lodged a police report and the couple were arrested.

Police told ST they did not receive any prior police report regarding Trevor before Sept 2, 2024.

Lew said paediatricians and medical social workers carefully evaluate children suspected of being abused. They may work with other specialists based on the child’s situation and injuries.

Cases in which clinical, social and behavioural indicators raise a reasonable concern of harm are referred to MSF through the National Anti-Violence and Sexual Harassment Helpline.

Where there are no child safety concerns, care arrangements and referrals to relevant community and social agencies may be made before discharge.

“The tragic loss of Trevor saddens all of us at KKH. It has fortified our resolve to further strengthen the care and support provided to the families,” said Lew.

The MSF spokesperson noted that Trevor’s parents had attended a marriage preparation programme from May to June 2023, before he was born. They were also offered parenting-related resources.

“Trevor’s death was a tragedy. The primary responsibility for his abuse and death lies with his parents, who pleaded guilty and have been sentenced by the court for their offences.

“Child protection professionals must often make difficult assessments based on incomplete and evolving information, including information provided by those caring for the child,” the spokesperson said.

While no child protection system can uncover each concealment or misrepresentation, or spot every case in time, the MSF spokesperson said this does not diminish the collective responsibility to learn from serious cases and continually strengthen how concerns are identified, shared and followed up.

MSF has beefed up the child protection system after the review of Megan’s case in 2025. Among other changes, only agencies with the relevant expertise are allowed to manage child abuse cases from May 1, the spokesperson pointed out.

These agencies include family service centres, child protection specialist centres and children’s homes. They are collectively known as child protection case management agencies.

This article was first published in The Straits Times . Permission required for reproduction.

新加坡——八个月大的婴儿特雷弗·尼奥（Trevor Neo）在遭受父母虐待后死亡，在他去世前，社会及家庭发展部（MSF）的保护服务部门或任何社会服务机构都没有收到关于虐待问题的转介。

2024 年 1 月 18 日至 23 日，这名婴儿因呕吐、饮奶量减少以及被母亲摇晃等问题被送入竹脚妇幼医院 (KKH) 接受治疗。

特雷弗出院后，他的父母同意遵循医院制定的护理计划。

KKH 医疗委员会主席 Eileen Lew 于 10 月 21 日告诉《海峡时报》，医院在 Trevor 出院后继续跟进他的病例，包括协助他的父母获得育儿和儿童发展支持服务。

她补充说：“由于没有其他未决问题，此案最终结案。”

Lew 没有提供护理计划的细节，也没有说明 KKH 在结案前对该病例进行了多长时间的跟进。

在 Trevor 的父母于 10 月 21 日被判刑后，MSF 和 Lew 回应了 ST 关于 Trevor 案件的问题。

27岁的Neo Jia Ming被判处16年有期徒刑，23岁的Chloe Gan Ci Xuan被判处15年零3个月有期徒刑。

在特雷弗短暂的一生中，他大部分时间都遭受父母的殴打、摇晃，甚至被捂住口鼻。最终，在2024年9月，他的母亲捂住他的脸，打他的脸，并把他脸朝下按在床垫上，试图阻止他哭喊，导致他窒息而死。

无国界医生组织告诉《海峡时报》，他们已为特雷弗的案件任命了一个独立审查小组，以找出经验教训并建议对儿童保护系统进行进一步改进。

无国界医生组织发言人表示：“审查结果凸显了专业人员需要更好地识别和应对涉及婴幼儿的问题，并在家庭与不同服务机构接触时协调支持工作。”

发言人补充说，这些经验教训已在社会、医疗保健和幼儿教育领域分享。

尽管特雷弗于 2024 年去世，但无国界医生组织还是任命了独立审查小组。此前，该部门于 2025 年 11 月表示，所有社会服务部门已知的儿童死亡事件都将进行独立审查。

这一举措是在四岁女童梅根·孔（Megan Khung）不幸去世后采取的，她被母亲和前伴侣虐待致死。

在她的案例中，多个机构存在违规行为，包括儿童保护服务机构的一名官员未能记录梅根的幼儿园寻求帮助的电话，以及警察没有遵守程序。

医院里发生了什么事

KKH 的 Lew 提供了 Trevor 去世前两次住院期间的更多细节。

第一次是在2024年1月18日，当时他大约一个月大。那天，尼奥上班时，甘摇晃了婴儿，特雷弗失去知觉后，甘又回去睡觉了。

后来，当她试图喂特雷弗吃饭时，特雷弗没有反应，于是她就此事与尼奥互发了短信。

随后，尼奥将他带到KKH医院，该医院对他进行了“彻底的评估”，包括脑部扫描、眼部检查和X光检查。

刘医生说，经检查，婴儿身体状况正常，没有受伤，也没有失去意识的情况。他还补充说，婴儿的父母已同意遵守医院的治疗方案。

第二次探访是在 2024 年 4 月 2 日。在此日期之前或当天，尼奥把手伸进特雷弗的嘴里，四处翻找，直到孩子舌头下出血。

婴儿的保姆发现伤势后，坚持要带 Trevor 去看医生，于是 Neo 和 Gan 把他带到了 KKH 医院。

KKH的Lew表示，当天为Trevor检查的医生发现他身体状况良好，舌下没有撕裂或出血。婴儿当天就出院了。

尼奥和甘曾提到特雷弗喜欢吮吸自己的手和手指，卢补充道。

她补充说：“他的父母及时就医，非常配合，并提供的证词与临床检查结果一致。”

五个月后，即2024年9月2日，特雷弗被送往医院时已失去意识。尽管医护人员尽力抢救，他最终还是去世了。医院工作人员向警方报案，这对夫妇被逮捕。

警方告诉《圣路易斯邮报》，在 2024 年 9 月 2 日之前，他们没有收到任何关于 Trevor 的警方报告。

刘医生表示，儿科医生和医务社工会对疑似遭受虐待的儿童进行仔细评估。他们可能会根据儿童的具体情况和伤情与其他专家合作。

如果临床、社会和行为指标引起人们对伤害的合理担忧，则通过国家反暴力和性骚扰热线将案件转介给无国界医生组织。

如果没有儿童安全问题，可以在出院前做出照护安排，并将相关情况转介给社区和社会机构。

“特雷弗的不幸离世令KKH的所有人都感到悲痛。这更加坚定了我们进一步加强对家属关怀和支持的决心，”刘说道。

无国界医生组织发言人指出，特雷弗的父母在他出生前，曾于2023年5月至6月参加过婚前辅导课程，并获得了育儿方面的资源。

“特雷弗的死是一场悲剧。他的父母应对他的虐待和死亡负主要责任，他们已认罪并被法院判刑。”

发言人表示：“儿童保护专业人员经常必须根据不完整和不断变化的信息做出艰难的评估，包括照顾儿童的人提供的信息。”

虽然没有任何儿童保护系统能够发现每一起隐瞒或虚假陈述，或者及时发现每一起案件，但无国界医生组织发言人表示，这并不能减轻我们从严重案件中吸取教训并不断加强对问题的识别、分享和跟进的集体责任。

无国界医生组织在2025年对梅根的案件进行审查后，加强了儿童保护体系。发言人指出，除其他变化外，从5月1日起，只有具备相关专业知识的机构才能处理虐童案件。

这些机构包括家庭服务中心、儿童保护专科中心和儿童之家。它们统称为儿童保护个案管理机构。

本文最初发表于《海峡时报》。转载需获得许可。