A bitter pill.

Shelley Jofre and Steve le Fevre report on the tragedies that occur when hospitalised children die from the use of drugs which have only been licensed for use on adults. Debbie and Derek Hodge tell how their 9-year-old son, Gavin, died as a result of being sedated with the drug Propofol. Lynda and Brian Purshouse tell how one of their newborn twins was overdosed on morphine by a junior doctor. Expert pediatric doctors describe their dilemma when faced with an ill child and only an unlicensed medication to treat them with. At the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children they are testing the blood of sick children to see how the drugs they are given affect their blood.