When a man suddenly became unconscious on a recent Delta flight, fellow passenger Tamika Cross, MD volunteered to help. However, as she explains in a now-viral Facebook post, her offer wasn't graciously accepted — in fact, it basically wasn't accepted at all.
After the call was put out for a physician on board, "I raised my hand to grab [the flight attendant's] attention," she writes. But Dr. Cross says the flight attendant brushed her off, saying the crew was looking for "actual physicians or nurses or some type of medical personnel."
"I tried to inform her that I was a physician," writes Dr. Cross. "But I was continually cut off by condescending remarks."
Then, another doctor approached, this time a white male. Dr. Cross says the flight attendant quickly enlisted his help instead.
Of course, we're happy that everyone's okay. But it's disappointing to see yet another example of discrimination on flights — especially when someone's health was in danger.
For its part, Delta Air Lines tells R29 that it's looking to resolve the issue with Dr. Cross. "Discrimination of any kind is never acceptable," says Catherine Sirna, a spokesperson for Delta. "We’ve been in contact with Dr. Cross and one of our senior leaders is reaching out to assure her that we're completing a full investigation."
"Whether this was race, age, [or] gender discrimination," writes Dr. Cross, "it's not right." Read her full account below.
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