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Nurse: Hospital Let Patient Ban Black Workers

Stethoscope and gavel against a white backdrop.
Wikimedia Commons
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The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

  A federal judge says a St. Petersburg nurse can move forward with a discrimination claim against Palms of Pasadena Hospital, which she says allowed a patient’s family to refuse treatment from black staffers in 2013, the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Syrenthia Dysart’s lawsuit claims that after she checked the elderly patient’s vitals, the family reported that the patient had been mugged by a black man, and requested that no black staff members treat the patient, the Times reports.

Dysart said she reported the incident to human resources, and the hospital offered her paid vacation, the Times reports. She continues to work at Palms of Pasadena Hospital and says she has not encountered any other incidents like this, according to the Times.

Originally founded in December 2006 as an independent grassroots publication dedicated to coverage of health issues in Florida, Health News Florida was acquired by WUSF Public Media in September 2012.