A special team will arrive in Bermuda in the coming week to help the Office of the Ombudsman prepare to deal with complaints about discrimination at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

Bermuda?s Ombudsman, Arlene Brock, told this week that the experts are from the Ontario Ombudsman Office and were part of the Special Ombudsman Response Team, SORT.

The Office of the Ombudsman was set up to accept complaints from the public about administrative decisions or actions of any Government department, board or other body established by Parliament or a Minister. Ms Brock stressed that the investigation into the claims of discrimination will be done independent of Government or any other body.

The SORT experts coming to Bermuda conduct specialised investigations on high profile issues, particularly when the issues impact a large number of people. Over the past two years SORT has investigated the Ontario Health Ministry?s failure to properly administer new born screening, as well as the issues facing parents who have to relinquish custody of their special needs children. They have also completed reports on the Health Ministry?s refusal to fund the drug Cystagon for treatment of Batten?s Disease, which they deemed ?unreasonable and unfair?. Another investigation found that delays in disability support negotiations were ?unreasonable?.

In April the Mid-Ocean News revealed that a black physician complained that he had been subjected to ?blatant acts of racism?.

The claims were made in a letter written to the Bermuda Hospitals Board chairman Anthony Richardson. The paper obtained a copy of the letter from an anonymous source. The source added: ?This problem has been going on for years and the BHB and the Government are well aware of it, but nothing is done.?

The physician who wrote the letter stated he was a black plastic surgeon and complained of white physicians getting preferential treatment. He added that staff often made it difficult for him to schedule his procedures and were indifferent towards his patients. ?Clear and specific complaints simply fell on deaf ears,? he wrote. ?Whilst it is true that we work together as a team, we are far too often distracted by the divisiveness of institutional racism that abounds at the KEMH.

?Frankly I am concerned about reprisals against me for writing this letter. I am more afraid, however, that these destructive practices will continue unabated and unchallenged, if I do nothing.?

The Bermuda Ombudsman stated earlier in the week that the SORT experts would assist them in preparing for the ?largest issue? they have had to deal with. ?They will assist us in designing and advancing the process of the investigation,? she said. ?We will have to be disciplined and keep the investigation narrow enough so that it is not unwieldy, but not too narrow that we do not touch on all of the issues that need to be addressed.

?In the past year they have been the leaders in systemic investigations and revolutionised the methodology of doing such investigations .?

She added that an investigator from SORT would also be available for consultation over the coming months as the investigation unfolds.

The Office of the Ombudsman is about to celebrate its one year anniversary on September 1. The BHB did not comment on the issue yesterday.