Imagine being so rooted in your prejudices that you would not allow a medical provider of a certain ethnicity to treat your child. Apparently, this occurs more often that one might think. Recently, a lawsuit was filed against a Michigan hospital after, Tonya Battle, a nurse was barred from taking care of an infant patient because of her skin color.
In the complaint, obtained by the local TV station, Battle claims that the newborn’s father showed her supervisor “a swastika of some kind” and asked that no black people be involved in his child’s care.
Battle, who was taken off the case, was allegedly later told by a supervisor that the patient’s request was granted. The suit also states that a note was appended to the patient’s file that read “No African American nurse to take care of baby.”
Currently the nurse is seeking “compensatory damages” for emotional stress and possible “harm to her reputation.” For more on this story visit The Huffington Post.
BMWK — Do you think parents have a right to request who is and isn’t allowed to treat their child? Do you think the nurse’s decision to file a lawsuit was appropriate?