Vendor claims discrimination at MCMH

A vendor has accused the staff at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) of discrimination and is questioning why he was not admitted to the hospital early Sunday morning.

Quinne Andrews claims that around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, October 9, he turned up at the hospital in need of medical attention, but was turned away by security and hospital staff who, he says, accused him of faking illness.{{more}}

In an interview with SEARCHLIGHT on Wednesday, the salesman said police officers, who were called to the scene arrested him, but he was released on Monday, October 10 when officers realized that he was indeed sick.

“Once they see me vomiting and stuff like that, they quickly asked for me to be released and taken back to the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital to get check up,” said Andrews.

“When I reach there is now is when they decide that I am eligible now to go into the ward to be admitted as a sick person…

“…I go through locked up, I go through humiliation, I went through discrimination, just to be attended to…,” he asserted.

Andrew further alleges that when he first went to the hospital, the security guard there identified him as the “crazy” salesman who sells around town.

“They don’t know anything about me; they’re just seeing me and bringing judgement upon me… they just watching the way you dress, the way you flexing and just giving you a label,” the irate man said.

Andrews also said while he is not trying to create confusion or cause anyone to lose their jobs, persons need to know what other people go through when seeking medical attention.

Everyone should be attended to equally, no matter his or her status, religion or hairstyle, he said.

Disclosing that he is asthmatic, he said he fears the possibility of the situation repeating itself in the future, but with a worse outcome. Recognizing that in publishing the story he may worsen his situation, Andrews said he just wants his side to be known.

SEARCHLIGHT tried contacting the police officers who Andrews said made the arrest; however, they could not be reached and head of the Criminal Investigation Department, Assistant Superintendent of Police Ruth Jacobs stated that she was not aware of the situation.

A female who answered the telephone in the office of the hospital administrator and who identified herself as “hospital administrator”, but refused to give her name, said she was unaware of any such situation and not sure if the persons named by Andrews were employees of the MCMH.(AS)