Such is the situation in some hospitals in England. A nurse’s tiny crucifix, which she has worn around her neck since her confirmation, is suddenly a “health and safety issue,” a dangerous piece of jewelry. Shirley Chaplin has refused to take it off and is now fighting for her job. Read story here. Meanwhile another nurse, in another hospital, refused a severely ill patient’s request for water after he accidentally knocked over a glass that he had. Then, when he, sixty-year-old Derek Sauter, called his doctor on his cell phone for help, the doctor was stopped from entering the man’s room by this same nurse, who then took away the patient’s cell phone. When the man died eight hours later, the nurse confronted the man’s angry wife and told her that her husband could have been prosecuted for”harassing” the doctor. The nurse says they did give him a jug of water, but obviously no one was checking on him or making sure he was able and did drink any. He was not monitored and died from pneumonia exacerbated by major fluid deficiency. Strangely enough, Mr. Sauter was a former administrator for the Healthcare Commission, the former National Health Service watchdog. This sad story is found here.
