Faithfully Yours - A good place to start
- Details
- Published on Friday, February 20, 2015
By Neil Strohscein
On December 12, 2014, over six years after it happened, the results of an inquest into the death of a 45 year old Aboriginal man named Brian Sinclair were released. The report by Provincial Court Judge Timothy J. Preston presented 63 recommendations which, in his opinion, should help prevent such tragedies in the future.
Sinclair’s life had been far from easy. He was a fiercely independent double amputee. He lived at the Quest Inn in Winnipeg and spent several hours each day volunteering at Siloam Mission. He had some serious health issues, one of which landed him in the Emergency Department of Winnipeg’s Health Science Centre on Sept. 19, 2008.
He checked in at the desk, left a letter from his doctor with one of the staff and then waited for his name to be called. Thirty-four hours later, he was dead from a treatable bladder infection. In all that time, no one came to examine him or check on him. His family, Aboriginal leaders, the Chief Medical Examiner, hospital administrators, legislators and the general public all demanded an explanation.
Preston’s report covers Sinclair’s last hours in excruciating detail. One by one, he records a series of policies not followed, assumptions made and oversights committed that resulted in what he called “a death that was certainly preventable.” But he stopped short of calling it a homicide.
Sinclair’s family, to no one’s surprise, dismissed the inquiry as “a waste of time and money.” “The report,” they said, “fails to address the institutional racism and stereotyping that killed Brian Sinclair and that continues to threaten the health and well-being of aboriginal people accessing the health care system.”
When asked if she believes there is systemic racism in the health system, Winnipeg Regional Health Authority CEO Arlene Wilgosh said it would be naïve to believe that it doesn’t. “But we (the people) failed Mr. Sinclair,” she said. “He came to us seeking help and we failed him.”
Wilgosh got it right. The same cannot be said for Manitoba’s Health Minister Sharon Blady. In a statement released shortly after Preston’s report was made public, she wrote: “The death of Mr. Brian Sinclair was a preventable tragedy. The system failed Mr. Sinclair and for that I humbly apologize to his family, friends and loved ones.”
With all due respect to Ms. Blady, I would argue that the “system” isn’t the problem. Some (by no means all) of the “people” who design, administer and work in the system are the problem. If we want to change the system, we must change the attitudes of those in the system who allow stereotypes and assumptions to influence how they treat those who come to them for help.
That’s where you and I must get involved. Our best weapon in the fight against racism and prejudice is the good example we set for others—an example of love, acceptance and forgiveness that recognizes each person as a unique creation of God and refuses to allow any external factor to influence how we treat him or her.
Our actions may not change how the “system” treats those of different races or cultures. But they will have a profound impact on the welcome and quality of care all people receive when we meet them on the street, when they patronize our businesses or when they enter our churches to join us for worship. We may not change the world by what we do, but we will help ease the tensions in our communities; and that’s a good place to start.
