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What I Should Have Done Before I Was Walked Out of PeaceHealth
It took me nearly three years to realize the simple words that could have changed everything.
It’s taken me nearly three years (and countless nights replaying it in my head) to finally realize what I should have done the day the hospital unlawfully walked me out the door.
Yes, I know hindsight is 20/20 — and what’s done is done. But maybe my epiphany will help someone else who finds themselves in a similar situation.
While on my walk this evening, it hit me like a ton of bricks — because it was so simple. I really had three options that day.
One: do what I did — gracefully hand over my badge, let them escort me out, and trust my union to fix it (we all know how that turned out).
Two: never go into that room in the first place without my union rep.
Three: if I did go in, refuse to leave until I had spoken with my rep — and not hand over my badge until I was instructed to do so.
Looking back now, it’s like watching a horror movie and yelling at the screen: “Don’t go in that room, stupid!”
Because the thing is, I had rights. I knew I had rights. And in that moment, they made me feel like I had none.
