An African American Michigan nurse is claiming that the hospital where she works has discriminated against her at the request of a white newborn’s father. Tonya Battle, a nurse at Hurley Medical Center, was caring for the baby on October 31st, 2012 in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The father allegedly asked Battle to speak with her supervisor. He told the charge nurse, Deborah Herholz, that she was to keep black nurses away from his baby. He rolled up the sleeve of his shirt to reveal a Swastika tattoo.?Herholz called the Nurse Manager, Mary Osika, who directed Herholz to reassign the baby to another nurse.
Osika met with the Director of Nursing the next day, and a?decision?was made to grant the father’s request. Osika announced the decision at a staff meeting and called Battle at home to tell her. When Battle reported to work the next day, she was informed that there was a note attached to the baby’s hospital clipboard chart that read ?No African American nurse to take care of baby? and she was shown a photo of the note.?(Court Papers)
Battle’s attorney, Julie A. Gafkay, has filed suit against the hospital on Battle’s behalf.
According to?the court documents, Battle, who has worked at the hospital since 1988, was ?shocked, offended and in disbelief that she was so egregiously discriminated against based on her race and re-assigned.? (WNEM)
Though a hospital spokesperson said that they eventually told the baby’s father?that they could not honor his request, the lawsuit claims that hospital supervisors continued to keep African American nurses away from the baby.?The lawsuit claims that after this incident, ?African American nurses were not assigned to the baby for approximately the next month because of their race.??(Court Papers)
Battle is seeking ?money damages against the Defendants for purposeful discrimination, under color of law, in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the?Fourteenth?Amendment to the U.S.Constitution.? Battle is also seeking claims against the hospital under the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act for intentional infliction of?emotional?distress. (Court Papers)
Hurley Medical Center’s has issued the following statement: ?Hurley Medical Center does not comment on past or current litigation.??(WNEM)
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