From left, Chrissy, Amelia and Joe Rivera
Late last night The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia issued an official apology to Amelia Rivera and her family for the denial of a kidney transplant due to her being “mentally retarded.”
“As an organization, we regret that we communicated in a manner that did not clearly reflect our policies or intent and apologize for the Riveras’ experience. While we can unequivocally state that we do not disqualify transplant patients on the basis of intellectual ability… this event underscores the importance of our responsibility to effectively communicate with families.” - Michael Apkon, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Thanks to everyone who worked or prayed for Amelia Rivera. Together, we helped turn the tide toward fairness and justice.
In the days and months ahead, I hope we can continue to make our voices heard for millions of others who struggle everyday with discrimination in its many forms.
-T
EDITOR’S NOTE: Read the previous posts on this issue here:
“An Update on Amelia” by Tim Shriver on February 7, 2012
“Raise Your Voice For Dignity” by Tim Shriver on January 18, 2012
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They must know and acknowledge the pledge of saving lives, for health for me apology has no room.
Their apology certainly didn’t take responsibility for their actions. I think the problem was they did communicate their feelings! Thank God that Social Networks brought it to light and people responded.