TEEN'S ECSTASY SECRET HAS MOM FUMING

A Calgary mom is raving mad at a local hospital for not informing her
after her 15-year-old daughter was treated and released after taking
Ecstasy at a dance party.

The teen's mom said she didn't even know her daughter, who can't be
named under the Young Offender's Act, was taken to the Peter Lougheed
after passing out at the Feb. 13 rave party until she got the
ambulance bill in the mail last week.

And while she hasn't overlooked her daughter's youthful indiscretion,
the mom is upset the drug could have induced a serious complication in
the girl, who has a heart condition.

"This could have been much worse," said the mom, adding her daughter
has tachycardia, a condition which causes the heart to beat faster
than 100 times a minute.

"If something would have happened that night, I would have been denied
the chance to see her -- and that's wrong."

While sympathetic to the woman's concerns, there's a risk young
patients won't seek medical help if they're afraid of getting in
trouble, said the Lougheed's medical director.

"I totally understand where the mom is coming from, but the staff made
it the first priority that the patient be treated," said Dr. Sid Viner.

"This girl was adamant her parents not find out ... you don't want to
treat (teens) in a way that discourages them from seeking medical care."

For her part, the girl said her first experience with drugs will be
her last.

"Ecstasy is really, really bad and please tell teenagers they
shouldn't take it," she said, adding she wouldn't have refused medical
attention if the hospital called her parents.

"No matter how much trouble you're going to be in, you'd want your
parents there for you -- they may yell at you later, but they'd rather
you're alive than dead."