A woman with sickle cell disease called out an Ohio nurse after the woman allegedly mocked her weight while she was posting from the hospital. The controversy eventually caught the attention of OhioHealth, which publicly responded to clarify that the nurse is not currently employed by the healthcare system.
Keeks (@keeksyong), who documents her experiences living with sickle cell disease, frequently shares advice for other people dealing with chronic illness and hospital stays. In a recent video, she recommended that patients keep snacks available during lengthy hospital visits.
That’s when she received a comment from a woman she identified as an Ohio nurse: “Girl ya don’t need a snack. You need exercise.“
Keeks responded with another video, calling the comment “not okay” and accusing the nurse of bullying a chronically ill patient. She initially called on OhioHealth to review the woman’s conduct, describing her as “unprofessional” and “just a bully.”
“Somebody who does that doesn’t have a heart for nursing,” Keeks said.
In the end, Keeks adds, “By the way, me getting exercise as a Sickle Cell Disease patient is not the medical advice I needed.” She said this wasn’t the only nurse who left mean comments on her videos. She ponders why the content she posts to help others going through illness leaves nurses “enraged” with her. Keeks ends with, “I post to help people. What are you guys doing?”
The video sparked reactions from viewers disgusted by the behavior of this nurse, just as Keeks was. One commenter called out as a whole, “A lot of mean girls are in nursing.” Another shared, “As a nursing student… Yikes. I’m sorry, girl. I promise to never be this nurse.”
The controversy eventually reached OhioHealth after commenters encouraged Keeks to report the woman. The healthcare system responded directly in the comments, distancing itself from the conduct and clarifying the woman’s employment status.
“Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We want to clarify that this individual is not currently employed by OhioHealth, and this behavior does not reflect our values or standards,” OhioHealth wrote.
Keeks initially wanted OhioHealth to address what she believed was one of its nurses behaving inappropriately online. Instead, the healthcare system’s response added an unexpected twist, making clear that the woman is not currently among its employees while condemning the behavior Keeks brought to its attention.
