Father’s heartache at daughter’s STI test after arrest of alleged childcare predator Joshua Brown

A Werribee father has shared the traumatic experience of having his 7-year-old daughter tested for STIs after allegations against childcare worker Joshua Brown.

An anguished father has spoken about the horrific ordeal of having to take his seven-year-old daughter to get tested for STIs after it was discovered accused pedophile Joshua Brown had worked at her childcare centre.

Often fighting off tears, the Werribee father said the testing was a traumatic experience for everyone involved and not something any child should ever have to go through.

“My daughter was saying ‘Daddy, this is really hurting me, make the lady stop’,” he told the Herald Sun.

“The urine test was OK, she thought it was quite amusing, but the blood tests … They had to take two full vials so the needle was in her arm for quite a long time.

“You could visibly see the pathologist was upset, the receptionists were upset, the doctor was upset. Because they’re all parents. It’s affected everyone.

“Our doctor has been my wife’s doctor for over 30 years. When we first found out we were pregnant, she was the one to tell us. She has been with us every step of the way.”

Alleged sex abuser Joshua Brown. Picture Supplied

In a sense, getting the tests done was the easy part, as now the agonising wait begins. The father said his heart sinks every time his phone makes a sound.

“If it was normal pathology, it’s usually 48 hours. Because it’s a criminal case, they don’t know – they think it could be anywhere between five and seven days,” he said.

“It’s every bit as bad as you think it’s going to be. Every time my phone rings … I get anxiety, every time it rings. It’s constantly attached to my hand as we’re waiting for that phone call.”

Adding to it all is the anguish of having to lie to his child, who is confused and scared. The father and his wife don’t want to traumatise her if everything turns out to be all clear.

“We’ve tried to shield her from it just in case there is nothing,” he said.

“It was so tough navigating through such a difficult situation and then I’m having to lie to my child and I don’t want to be doing that.

“In the hours after, she was still wondering why someone was trying to hurt her by taking blood out of her body.”

More than 2600 families had to be contacted in the wake of Joshua Brown’s alleged offending and over 1200 children informed they need to be tested for STI’s.

Originally published as Father’s heartache at daughter’s STI test after arrest of alleged childcare predator Joshua Brown