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AIBU - problems with antisemitism amongst NHS medical staff?

234 replies

Twiglets1 · Yesterday 06:32

The Campaign Against Antisemitism, a prominent UK watchdog group, has identified five healthcare professionals whose public statements it considers antisemitic or anti-Israel.

The five individuals, all current or former National Health Service employees, include midwife Fatimah Mohamied, who allegedly endorsed a post supporting Palestinian “resistance” on Oct. 7, 2023 by responding “Hell yeah!!!” to a post during the Hamas-led onslaught of October 7, 2023, that said: “Palestinians have a right to resist their occupation — we have a right to support them.”

Additionally, physician Dr. Abdelaal Ragheb Elfarra claimed Zionists control the media and the world; psychiatrist Dr. Ahmed Sewehli said regarding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “you need to be dead”; and emergency physician Dr. Nadeem Crowe described Israel as a “terrorist octopus.” Occupational therapist Zaida Akhtar allegedly shared a video appearing to encourage violence against Netanyahu’s son and a “false flag” claim about the Bondi Beach attack in Australia last year.

The allegations concerning the medical professionals follow a review published in June by John Mann, the British government’s independent adviser on antisemitism, which found “routine ostracism” of Jewish staff and patients within the NHS.

Jewish community representatives have warned that antisemitism in healthcare can affect patients at moments of particular vulnerability.

Karen Newman, a vice president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, described that concern during parliamentary testimony on May 14. She spoke about Jewish patients hesitating to request kosher meals after seeing a Palestinian badge on a nurse’s uniform.

“That is not a moment when you feel good asking for kosher meals,” she said.

https://www.jns.org/news/world/medical-staff-antisemitism-flagged-in-uk

OP posts:
Oak13af · Yesterday 21:13

Ilikesundays · Yesterday 20:37

By your logic, if a person of Russian heritage presents as an NHS patient, an NHS employee would be perfectly justified in haranguing them for Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine?

Not at all the op was talking about comments staff had made online not haranguing patients, if staff made comments about Putin online I’d say the same.

QuiteUnbelievable · Yesterday 21:14

It's always surprises me how politicised NHS staff and teachers are.

Twiglets1 · Yesterday 21:18

Oak13af · Yesterday 21:13

Not at all the op was talking about comments staff had made online not haranguing patients, if staff made comments about Putin online I’d say the same.

I wasn’t only talking about comments staff made online. As has already been pointed out to you. Don’t make me post the key findings of the Mann review into antisemitism and racism in the NHS again.

OP posts:
itsadlibitum · Yesterday 21:20

Hmm, I don’t like the celebration of 7/10 or encouraging people to hurt someone’s relative, but being anti the genocide is a perfectly normal and reasonable political view. As long as the comments are online and not said to their patients I don’t see what the issues are. Being anti genocide or even anti Israel’s current government and its policies is not in of itself antisemitism.

Oak13af · Yesterday 21:22

LuckyHazelFox · Yesterday 20:51

What have I just read. Jews just have to put up with it while going through the same complaint channels as everyone else!! Yes, while their primary children's schools are patrolled by strict security with such an unprecedented amount of hatred, they have got to just go with the flow, in the case of hostile people they come into contact with. Fcking hell Antisemitism is sometimes cleverly hidden. Put up and shut up because its not that different to anyone else's complaints.

Don’t be ridiculous. There is a complaints procedure for all patients if they receive poor or discriminatory behaviour whilst they are receiving NHS care. That is the channel to go through should anything happen, you’re talking hypothetically not about actual incidents. Wearing a badge is not an incident. I don’t like crosses or any religious sign, neither does my gay child as he knows several religions are discriminatory towards the lgbt community however he has to suck it up if staff choose to wear religious jewellery. He does not however have to put up with abuse or discriminatory behaviour and he would need to report it in the same way as every other person. Abuse is abuse, ditto discrimination. Nobody is more worthy of protection.

Oak13af · Yesterday 21:24

Twiglets1 · Yesterday 21:18

I wasn’t only talking about comments staff made online. As has already been pointed out to you. Don’t make me post the key findings of the Mann review into antisemitism and racism in the NHS again.

Ok so as regards actual incidents there are procedures for everybody to go through. Abuse is abuse ditto racism. Everybody deserves the same level of protection.

5MinuteArgument · Yesterday 22:45

Boolabus · Yesterday 17:11

So you would not see any reason why the poppy worn by staff in the nhs in say Belfast, where the British army were on the streets for decades, shot at and killed civilians, colluded with paramilitaries and intimidated communities, would be seen as political? Britain and the NHS covers a whole lot more than just England

Yes, Britain and the NHS covers more than just England, but it doesn't cover Northern Ireland.

They are not part of Britain and they have their own health care system. Therefore if they banned their staff from wearing poppies, that would be up to them.

5MinuteArgument · Yesterday 22:52

QuiteUnbelievable · Yesterday 21:14

It's always surprises me how politicised NHS staff and teachers are.

Yes, that's the point. It's not as if our institutions are doing such an outstanding job that they've got time to sit around discussing the ins and outs of the Palestine-Israel conflict or any of the other causes du jour.

Why don't they just get on with the jobs they are paid to do, isn't that enough?

5MinuteArgument · Yesterday 23:03

Boolabus · Yesterday 18:05

The fact you need to ask demonstrates how little you know about it tbh. Poppy wearing in northern Ireland is a contentious, divisive and politically charged issue. NHS staff there do have a personal choice whether they wear one or not but many people would see it as a symbol of British army actions in NI and not a sign of remembrance and are offended by it. The point being, dismissing poppy wearing as not political, as has been done by some posters, is not accurate, it is deeply political in some British communities.

Northern Ireland is part of the UK but not part of Britain. The NHS only covers Britain. Northern Ireland have their own health care system where I imagine they have their own policies regarding what symbols their medical staff can wear.

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