Potential child abuse victims sent for more STI tests, as accused paedophile’s work history errors revealed

Angry parents say their children are being retraumatised after enduring two tests in a week for sexually transmitted infections, as authorities deal with the fallout from accused childcare paedophile Joshua Dale Brown.

This masthead has obtained copies of text message alerts sent by the Health Department on Tuesday to two parents who requested their children be tested for gonorrhea and chlamydia, only for a second message to be sent nearly two days later advising that they should also now be tested for syphilis.

One mother, who asked to remain anonymous to protect their children’s privacy, said she would have to get her children tested twice after receiving contradictory information from the department.

“It’s disgusting. In this kind of situation we’re reliant on accurate information so we can do the right thing for our kids,” she said.

Her two children had attended Only About Children in Williamstown at the time that Brown worked there from October 2020 to March 2021.

The unprecedented testing regime – at screening centres and GP clinics across the metropolitan area – was established after authorities learnt the 26-year-old from Point Cook had been diagnosed with several sexually transmitted infections, according to two police sources speaking on the condition of anonymity.

About 1300 young children are expected to be tested, with the more than 70 charges against Brown including allegations he used bodily fluid to contaminate children’s food.

That number might grow as authorities race to clarify incorrect dates surrounding Brown’s employment, and parents of some children who were initially thought to have not had contact with the alleged rapist are notified that they might have.

On Tuesday, the parent received verbal advice from the department to have her children tested for three types of infection, but then they received a text message “recommend[ing]” they undergo a urine test for two.

The doctor at the urgent clinic she attended with her children ordered tests based on the contents of the text message.

The mother was told results could take one to two weeks to be returned, despite department advice the turnaround time would be up to 48 hours. “I assumed that it would be like COVID times when we got told negative or positive,” she said.

She said that other parents from the centre were then told an additional test would be needed, and she called the department again for clarification.

On Thursday morning, new advice was sent by text message recommending blood tests also now be done for syphilis, as well as gonorrhea and chlamydia.

Childcare worker Joshua Brown has been charged with child sexual abuse offences.

The mother will now have to take her two children back to urgent care to be tested again, but is also considering paying for separate tests for hepatitis and HIV. “I’ve got no faith in them,” she said.

“The nurse that I spoke to today was just going off the information that she had, and she can’t explain why the Department of Health has sent out incorrect information to parents on Tuesday.”

A Health Department spokesperson said: “We acknowledge this is an extremely distressing time for everyone involved, and regret that this family faced additional stress and anxiety.

“Our highest priority is the health and wellbeing of the families and children involved, and wraparound supports are available.”

Other parents, who have contacted this masthead through a representative, said they had been instructed that their child from one of the affected centres did not need to be tested, while other children who attended at the same time were recommended to receive the tests.

“The f---ing department is telling different parents with kids in the same school different things,” the representative said.

Two department sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, said that authorities should have communicated better.

“This is not rocket science,” one of the insiders said.

“It doesn’t make sense that the advice keeps changing. If you’re not sure if you should be profiling two or three or four diseases, why don’t you just do four so as not to retraumatise the families?”

Chief Health Officer Christian McGrath said on Wednesday that several hundred children were referred for free testing on Tuesday, the same day the charges first became public knowledge. He said the referrals were based on case-by-case risk assessments.

Parents can elect to have the testing done at their regular GP or a private provider.

Families have been told they may be eligible for a payment of $5000 to assist with alternative care arrangements for their children who don’t need to be tested and lost earnings if they need to take time off work to accommodate the health screening.

Experts have said the chances of children being infected is low and that the tests have been recommended out of an abundance of caution. In Australia, gonorrhea and chlamydia is tested via a first-catch urine sample or a swab of a potentially affected area such as the throat. Syphilis is detected via a blood sample.

If left untreated, gonorrhea can lead to permanent health problems such as infertility. Late-stage syphilis can cause brain damage, heart disease and even blindness.

The Health Department has moved to assure affected families and the broader community that any infections as a result of this case could be treated with antibiotics. These antibiotics are delivered either orally or as an injection.

Police visit the Papilio Early Learning centre in Essendon on Tuesday morning.Credit: Justin McManus

Another father, who asked not to be named and for his child’s centre not to be identified, said he and his partner had been unable to work or sleep while they endured one of “the most traumatic events I’ve ever experienced”.

“We were praying all night; I kept calling them 24/7,” he said. “I can’t sleep as a father and a parent. I hope other parents affected can go get their justice.”

He urged other parents who had children at centres in Melbourne and Geelong where Brown had worked since 2017 to demand the care logs for their children from the childcare operators, which would provide more clarity about what contact Brown had with their children.

“They have details of your child’s activities each day, including which person did what, a sleep log, toilet and nappy change log,” he said.

He also said parents were considering class action against the childcare provider, but that his immediate focus was on the return of his child’s test results.

Parents are also reeling from fresh revelations that there were significant errors in the employment dates sent to families and made public.

At Essendon Papilio Early Learning in Melbourne’s north, authorities advised families that Brown had begun working at the centre on February 17 and remained there until just days before his arrest on child sex abuse charges in May.

But alert parents contacted this masthead with evidence of Brown working at the daycare on December 13, more than two months before the date officially advised, and said they recalled the alleged offender caring for children at Papilio as early as August.

The date discrepancy means that families whose children had contact with the 26-year-old before February 17 fell outside the time frame for official notification.

Sources close to the information chain but not authorised to speak publicly said Brown’s work history was supplied by Papilio’s operator, national childcare giant Affinity Education, to police early in their investigation and then to the Health Department. The department used these dates in its notification process and public communications.

The original dates supplied by Affinity were taken from a payroll database, but after other employee databases were searched for more information on Brown, an updated timeline has been sent to authorities.

A spokesperson for the company said it was still going through its records for material that might assist investigators.

“Given the serious nature of the matter, we are currently reviewing our records in detail to ensure completeness,” the spokesperson said.

“Affinity Education continues to co-operate fully with authorities and remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of the children and families in our care.”

Doubts have also emerged over the supplied information on Brown’s time at D.O.T.S Occupational Therapy for Children in Footscray, where officials said he worked from March 1 to April 30 last year.

But D.O.T.S director Hannah Dunn told this masthead: “This ex-employee was employed at D.O.T.S. from March 18 to April 24, 2024.”

Dunn said the Footscray therapy clinic had terminated Brown’s employment after five weeks because he was “not a good fit”.

G8 Education told this masthead Brown had worked at its Greenwood Point Cook centre from February 14 to 17, 2023 and on March 10, 2023, but the state government’s website says he worked at the centre from February 14 to March 10, 2023.

A police spokesperson said online information would be updated as fresh details became available.

“As part of the ongoing investigation, information has been compiled from a number of sources and records in relation to Brown’s employment history,” the spokesperson said.

That information, including dates and locations, was released on Tuesday based on what was known at that time.

Brown is accused of abusing eight children, aged between five months and two years, while he worked at the Creative Garden Early Learning Centre in Point Cook between April 2022 and January 2023.

The 26-year-old, who is in custody, will be brought to court in September to face more than 70 charges, including sexually penetrating a child under 12, attempting to sexually penetrate a child under 12, sexually assaulting a child under 16 and producing child abuse material.

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has appointed two reviewers to make urgent recommendations to bolster safety in the childcare sector following the revelations.

Former premier of South Australia Jay Weatherill and Pamela White, chair of the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority, have been named to lead the review, which is due to report back by August 15.

With Caroline Schelle, Cassandra Morgan and Sherryn Groch