Allegation of racial discrimination in Qld health system

A class action lawsuit has been filed in the Federal Court alleging racial discrimination at two Queensland Health facilities.

The lawsuit alleges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients were given substandard care contrary to the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 at the North West Hospital and Health Service and Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service regions.

First Nations elder Robert “Bongo” Sagigi has called on the State government to meet with communities in Queensland’s north to discuss the issue.

“The director generals, and all the mob down there, sitting in an office in Brisbane, they don’t know what’s happening on the grassroots level,” he told the ABC.

Lawyer Rebecca Jancauskas, representing the plaintiffs, said the allegations amount to racial discrimination and should be addressed.

“These hospitals and health services are alleged to have treated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients differently based on their race or factors that were closely associated to their race,” she told the ABC.

“The claim we’ve filed in the Federal Court alleges breaches of the Racial Discrimination Act.”