‘It will live in my heart for the rest of my life – I will never forget that tribute.’

The man was charged in early April after an incident near the Blenheim railway station.

A Crown expert says there is no basis for an infanticide defence.

Many Australians claim they have an allergy to penicillin when they're admitted to hospital, but researchers say that's often not the case.

Making matters worse, studies also outline that not being able to use the common antibiotics to treat patients tends to lead to worse outcomes.

So how common are the phantom allergies, and what can be done about them? This is what you need to know.

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How many people with a penicillin allergy are actually not allergic?

According to a 2015 study, up to 25 per cent of Australian hospital patients say they are allergic to antibiotics, about half of whom say they're allergic to penicillin, or beta-lactam antibiotics.

However, for every 10 patients who say they're allergic to penicillin, research shows nine won't actually be allergic.

"When you go to the trouble of skin testing and challenging people, around 90 per cent don't actually have penicillin allergy," Dr Winnie Tong, an allergy researcher at UNSW and clinical immunologist at St Vincent's Hospital Sydney, said.

Her comments echo the findings of a 2019 Australian study which said more than 90 per cent of allergies may not be legitimate.

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"Not only may most penicillin allergies recorded be inaccurate, but many penicillin allergies wane over time," researcher Misha Devchand said at the time.

"Half of people allergic to penicillin will lose their allergy over five years, and 80 per cent over 10 years."

Tong said many of these incorrect allergies originate in childhood.

"Many patients say their parents told them," she said.

"For example, one person has a reaction and the parents are concerned others in the family could be allergic, even though penicillin allergy is not inherited."

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How can patients check if they're actually allergic?

Someone who thinks they have a penicillin allergy but hasn't had it clinically confirmed can get it checked by a medical professional, often using skin tests or an oral rechallenge test.

"If you think that you are allergic to penicillin, it may be a good idea to have your allergy reassessed. Maybe you can be 'de-labelled' – that is, having the allergy removed from your health record," Devchand said after her study was released.

However, sometimes it's not a straightforward process. Tong currently has a six- to 12-month waitlist for patients wanting to get their allergy checked, and says there are further barriers to actually getting people to start taking the medicine.

"The problem is you do all this testing and the patient still won't take penicillin," she said.

"Maybe they didn't understand the results, or their GP didn't get the results letter."

Why are phantom penicillin allergies an issue? 

By erroneously saying they can't take penicillin, a patient is opening themselves up to the possibility of worse treatment.

"Antibiotic allergy labels are correlated with increases in length of hospital stay, hospital readmission rates, surgical site infections, and admissions to intensive care units," the 2019 study in Australian Prescriber said.

"Similarly in general practice, penicillin allergy labels are associated with an increased risk of death."

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Part of the issue with not being able to take penicillin is it leads to patients being prescribed broader-spectrum or suboptimal medicines as an alternative.

This, in turn, can contribute to antibiotic resistance – the phenomenon in which germs develop the ability to survive treatment from the drugs designed to target them.

"The increased use of broad-spectrum drugs in hospitalised patients with penicillin allergies also contributes to the growing global problem of antimicrobial resistance," Devchand and fellow researcher Jason Trubiano wrote.

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The head of an iconic Aussie figure has been stolen.

Crangan Bay's "big prawn" is suddenly missing its head, with some locals suspecting an angle grinder was used to saw it off between August 4 and 5.

The prawn loomed over the former Big T Roadhouse at Frazer Park, which burned down in October 2013.

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NSW Police say there has not been any reports of malicious damage since the prawn head went missing.

The prawn has been a local fixture since 1991, when it was constructed by local man Shane Simpson.

While maybe not as well-known as its Ballina cousin, the Crangan prawn is enough of an icon that several years ago the Central Coast council sought to purchase it from their neighbours Lake Macquarie.

Then-councillor Jillian Hogan told the ABC in 2020 that purchasing the prawn would a good way to get "some attention".

However, with the council currently in administration and voters not due to elect new councillors until next year, it's uncertain whether those plans are a priority.

An orthopedic surgeon who is normally scrubbing up in Sydney's biggest hospitals has performed a back operation on an orangutan at a zoo.

San Tans is Australia's oldest male orangutan and like many elderly men, he is struggling with arthritis while living at Sydney Zoo in Eastern Creek.

San Tans is 45 years old, or 75 in orangutan years, and weighs 106 kilos.

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"Apart from being a lot hairier – although some patients would give him a run for his money… his anatomy is very similar to that of a human," orthopaedic surgeon Paul Thornton-Bott said.

"We don't know if San Tans is ever going to be a candidate for hip replacement surgery so what we want to do is give him something that we know is going to take his pain away."

The elderly ape is expected to recover by Friday.

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The death toll in Maui County is now 36, according to a press release from the US county, after devastating fires that took the Hawaiian island by surprise burnt out shopfronts and destroyed homes.

"As the firefighting efforts continue, 36 total fatalities have been discovered today amid the active Lahaina fire," the release said.

"No other details are available at this time."

Wildfires, whipped by strong winds from Hurricane Dora passing far to the south, left behind burned-out cars on once busy streets and smoking piles of rubble where historic buildings had stood.

Flames roared throughout the night, forcing adults and children to dive into the ocean for safety.

Officials said earlier that 271 structures were damaged or destroyed and dozens of people injured.

More to come.

The mother of a teenage boy suffering from a rare autoimmune disease believes doctors at a Victorian hospital told her he was likely exaggerating his symptoms to get out of school.

Maysen Bowen, 12, was rushed to Sunshine Hospital after suffering intense body aches and being unable to eat.

His mother, Jessica Bye, said after blood tests failed to identify a clear issue, doctors began asking questions.

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"He couldn't really move, he could barely stand," she said.

"One time I had to help him to go to the toilet and I had to physically lift his legs off the bed."

She claims doctors asked if her child's symptoms were exaggerated and that he possibly wanted to stay home from school.

The young boy, unable to walk without a wheelchair, was discharged later that day.

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"We didn't get very far down the road and Maysen said something to me and I noticed his voice was really slurred," Bye said.

"I looked over at him and the whole left side of his face was floppy."

She immediately turned the car around and returned to the hospital where she said doctors finally began to take her son's condition seriously.

He has since been diagnosed with the rare condition Guillain-Barre Syndrome and is now being treated at the Royal Children's Hospital.

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"He's a 12-year-old child who's now bedridden," Bye said.

"It's hard to know how bad he would have been if we were assessed faster and diagnosed quicker."

A Western Health spokesperson said the organisation is reviewing the incident.

"We acknowledge that this is a difficult time for the patient and his family," the spokesperson said.

"We are in contact with the family and are committed to thoroughly reviewing this incident to identify any opportunities to improve our care."

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A man has been charged with two counts of murder after his wife and their newborn baby were found dead in a home in Central Queensland.

WARNING: Some readers may find content in this story distressing.

Police said officers were called to a home at Park Avenue in Rockhampton just before 11am on Thursday.

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At the home, police found the bodies of 30-year-old Tayla Cox and her 11-week-old baby girl, Murphy Margaret Cox.

Matthew Cox went to Fortitude Valley police station in Brisbane after allegedly reporting there were two dead people at the Rockhampton home.

The 31-year-old father has since been charged with two counts of murder (domestic violence offences).

He will face court tomorrow.

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Detective Inspector Darrin Shadlow said it was a "confronting scene" for first responders.

He dispelled claims there was a firearm used in the alleged crime.

Police believe Ms Cox and Murphy Margaret died on Tuesday before Mr Cox flew from Rockhampton the same night to Brisbane "after allegedly committing the offences".

A car was seized by police at Rockhampton Airport and is undergoing forensic examination.

Mr Cox was not known to police and there was no previous domestic violence history.

A crime scene was established at the Rockhampton home while a second crime scene was established at an apartment in Fortitude Valley, where police believe the man was staying.

Shadlow said the family of Ms Cox and her baby have been notified and they are "devastated".

Shadlow confirmed Ms Cox and her baby were a local family and were residents of the home.

The couple lived in a modest three-bedroom home in Rockhampton with a social media post revealing Ms Cox's excitement when they settled on the property.

"New chapter, can't wait to make so many amazing memories with our beautiful little family," it said.

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Mr Cox is a TV executive with Southern Cross Austereo and Ms Cox was on maternity leave.

The couple welcomed their child Murphy Margaret in June.

Neighbours were left shocked by the incident.

"I feel sick to my stomach. They're one of your generic, lovely families," a neighbour said.

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).

A teenager and baby have been found alive and well in Western Australia's south-west.

Western Australia Police said the 17-year-old and five-week-old baby have been found safe and sound.

"We no longer require public assistance with this matter," police said.

Earlier, police issued a call for information on the pair's whereabouts.

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