Michigan Hospital Admits Considering Swastika-Tattooed Man’s Request For No Black Nurses

[Purveyor]

A Michigan hospital on Tuesday admitted that it had considered honoring a man’s request that no African-American nurses care for his baby, but it insisted that the idea was eventually rejected.

Tonya Battle, who has worked as a nurse at Hurley Medical Center for 25 years, told the Detroit Free Press that she is suing the hospital because she says she was reassigned after a man instructed staff to allow no African-Americans around his newborn.

The charge nurse reportedly told Battle that the man had rolled up his sleeve to reveal a swastika tattoo.

WJRT obtained a copy of a sign that was allegedly posted above the the assignment clipboard.

“Please, No African American Nurses to care for [redacted] Baby per Dad’s request,” the note read.

MORE...

Raw Story (http://s.tt/1A0N8)

[Purveyor]

1. A managing nurse from another hospital called into WJR Detroit this morning stating that her

hospital, which she would not disclose, routinely honored just requests as a matter of 'patients rights'.

She went on to example arabs patients refusing female doctors, nurses, etc.

Curious to hear from those in the healthcare industry if this is the normal.

[amandabeech]

12. I'm sorry to hear that arab patients are refusing female medical professionals.

Since at least 50% of medical students are female, the best or only doctor available may very well be female.

I'm also concerned about the treatment of women in general by those who refuse female medical personnel.

[riderinthestorm]

13. Remember the guy who punched out the nurse for trying to remove his wife's burqa for a C-section?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002161797

Eek!

And this was a female nurse examining his wife!

I've heard anecdotal stories of the strictly religious who won't let an opposite sex healthcare worker examine them but it would be interesting to see if hospitals routinely accommodate that kind of nonsense.

Gah! If your Orthodox Jewish husband goes into the ER with appendicitis and the only ER doc is a woman do they refuse to be seen? And do hospitals make it a practice to allow that kind of behavior?

You'd think the hospitals wouldn't allow it. I'm guessing that in some instances it would jeopardize patient care if they had to routinely shuffle medical staff instead of allowing them to triage/care take as necessary regardless.

[renate]

2. thinking about that baby makes me SO DAMN SAD

Babies are so pure and innocent... it just makes me ill to think about what he or she will grow up hearing and maybe even ( ) believing.

[bluestate10]

3. That nazi dad just as well should tie weights to his baby's feet and throw the baby

into the deepest part of Lake Michigan because he is killing that baby's future. The world 20 years from now will be a bad, bad place for racists. If the baby grow up to be a racist like the father, the baby has no future at the minimum and in fact may end up being hunted down by people determined to destroy racists.

[Nolimit]

4. Seems like the state could step it.

Having a neo-Nazi dad is arguably a hazardous environment to raise a kid.

[frazzled]

5. Perhaps they should have said they considered it to protect the nurse

Frankly, I wouldn't trust someone with a swastika tattooed on his forearm. No telling what he might do. It might not have been a consideration for his "rights," but rather for the safety and rights of the nursing staff.

I wouldn't want to be in the position where he might attack a nurse.

[politicat]

7. That's been my thought, but the hospital could have handled it much better.

Misguided attempt to protect an employee from a perceived threat, rather than catering to a patient's prejudice.

[uponit7771]

8. They can't consider doing something illegal because of a nut job

[blue neen]

6. If the baby had a serious medical emergency in the hospital,

and the only nurse available to save it's life was African-American.....

would he have sent the nurse out of the room?

[pink-o]

9. Yeah, probably.

The baby was a preemie, Tonya Battles had worked in the Neo Natal unit forever and was the best nurse there. So the idiot racist was already compromising his child's care by not allowing the nurse to do her job.

It's bad enough that the crazies are sucking up our air and resources, but when established institutions validate their insanity, you just gotta wonder. How the f*ck can we drag America into the 21st century when extremists like this actually get respect?

[blue neen]

10. Excellent points.

So, this jerk put his racism above his child's life. One has to feel very sorry for this baby.

[marions ghost]

11. I admire the nurse

for making a case of it. To make people aware that it is going on --and IMO the hospital could instruct incoming patients that they cannot request changes of personnel based on race. Put it in the fine print?

On the other hand, the patient or family usually has the right to object, if it's a reasonable request, for a change. When my dad was in ICU, he had great nursing care. Except for one woman who thought she was the Angel of Death. Tombstones in her eyes. We got her taken off his case right away.

[newfie11]

14. Having worked 40 years as a reg radiographer in California, VA,wash DC,MI,NC,and SD

I have never heard of any patient requesting only white nurses or techs and I worked in the south.

I wonder if this is becoming worse now. This out in the open discrimination in today's world is getting as bad as it used to be years ago.