'Very dangerous': Healthcare worker's warning over $20 Kmart toy for kids

"I don’t believe I would have so much of an issue with the product if there was an obvious difference between the real and fake, like the rest of the set."

Growing up, it seemed like every child had a doctor's playset. We turned bedrooms into makeshift clinics with plastic stethoscopes and sparked that caring curiosity as we pretended to take the temperature of any 'sick' patient willing to participate. 

 

But what happens when the contents of the toy appear a little too... realistic?

That's the dilemma one mum recently faced after purchasing a popular playset from Kmart.

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The health care worker was concerned about an item included in the doctor's play set from Kmart. Image: TikTok / @lauren.gates91

Almost identical to real pills

Lauren, also a healthcare worker, was on the hunt for a toy for her friend's three-year-old son when she picked up the 24-piece play and learn doctor playset from Kmart. 

Just $20 and packed with a heap of medical-themed items, she thought the toy was "good value for money", but there was one item included that didn't sit well with her. 

"My first thought was that the toy was great. Good value for money and a fantastic toy, until I got home and saw the fake but very realistic pill packet, and I was shocked that it had been included," Lauren told Kidspot.

The pretend pill packet appears to be identical to another of Panadol, which raised a heap of concerns as a medical professional and as a parent. 

"As a healthcare worker I believe this toy can be a fantastic learning tool for young children, it opens them up to the amazing work that goes on in healthcare, however with this particular toy inside the pack, I believe it will encourage children to see pills and medication as a plaything rather than something serious," she says. 

The $20 play set is sold out in a lot of stores. Image: Kmart

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Education around the safety of medication is key

While Lauren decided to return the toy to Kmart for a more 'suitable' playset, she is concerned that other parents might not notice the small item included. 

"I believe education around the safety of medication is key here, much like we teach children safety around drugs, alcohol and social media. The unfortunate side to this is that not all parents/caregivers do teach their children this safety, but even for those that do, that can be a lot to ask most 3 year olds to fully understand and comprehend the consequences that would come with ingesting or playing with medication," she adds.

"Even though it is 100% adult’s responsibility to keep medication out of children’s reach, any parent knows that children have this fantastic ability to get into places and things they shouldn’t and it only takes seconds for an incident to occur.

"I don’t believe I would have so much of an issue with the product if there was an obvious difference between the real and fake, like the rest of the set. I believe if both products were laid on a table, even some adults would struggle to tell the difference at a quick glance. It is not worth our children’s safety and shouldn’t have been included in the set to begin with."

The woman held up a real packet of Panadol to show how realistic the toy looks. Image: TikTok / @lauren.gates91

Overreacting or need for a recall?

When Lauren shared the video of the toy on TikTok, she asked the online community if they thought she was overreacting. Many agreed that they too would have a problem with it. 

"Yeah that's too real, I would remove it or at least let the parents know so they can make a decision," one person commented. 

"I'm with you! It should be there as they wouldn't tell the difference and then could be taking parents tablets not suitable," another said. 

Another agreed that encouraging play with medicine is also a big concern: "That would send my kids signals where I've worked so hard to instill safety with meds, which would be undone. I'm ok with the caring parts of our profession as play, but not medicine. There's so much risk, it's not a game/toy."

"As a paramedic, I couldn’t agree more. I’m so shocked they included this," another echoed. 

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Meanwhile, others said they wouldn't be that concerned and the item could simply be removed by the parent or caregiver before giving it to the child to play with. 

"Have u seen the toys that us 80s kids lived through? Sometimes you need to leave decisions up to the parents," someone commented. 

Another agreed: "It's a hard one, I think that a more unrealistic looking version of medicine would have been better."

Upon returning the item, Lauren lodged a complaint with Kmart, who she was told was also the manufacturer of this particular playset.

While she's yet to hear back regarding her complaint, she hopes that by sharing her concern, others will reconsider purchasing the item or that the playset will be recalled completely. 

Kidspot contacted Kmart for comment.

Originally published as 'Very dangerous': Healthcare worker's warning over $20 Kmart toy for kids