Black woman says hospital staff threatened to call security after she tried to report a receptionist who allegedly dismissed her: ‘you screamed at me’

A woman says a hospital visit for severe period pain ended with her filming an argument at the reception desk. The video, posted by TikTok creator Tolu, shows the confrontation that followed.

Per her account in the video, the ordeal started at home, where she describes being doubled over from cramps severe enough that codeine and tramadol did nothing for the pain. She says she was vomiting bile despite not having eaten anything, and that her boyfriend eventually called an ambulance because, in her words, “this pain is too much.”

Once at the hospital, she says the front-desk receptionist barely acknowledged her or her boyfriend, and that after they explained the situation, the staffer told them an ambulance should only be called “if you’re dying or if you have a heart attack.” She says she felt dismissed, much like another patient who said staff accused her of trying to get high. She says she replied, “Okay, Ruth. I guess next time I’ll call the ambulance from the grave.”

The argument caught on camera

According to the woman, she was then sent to a second window for intake questions and asked a different staffer for the receptionist’s full name so she could file a complaint. She says the receptionist overheard her and started shouting, “My name’s Ruth! My name’s Ruth!” When she asked for a last name too, since more than one person could share that first name, she says Ruth told her, “Trust me, they’ll know who I am. That’s all you’re getting.”

The footage itself picks up mid-argument, with the receptionist telling her, “Switch that off,” and the woman refusing: “No, I won’t.” A second clip shows the receptionist saying, “Now you’re going to get removed,” while the woman pushes back, “I’ve come in here, and I’ve been nothing but respectful to you.”

She says her boyfriend eventually walked her away while she was crying, and that hospital security approached her shortly after because the receptionist had reported her for filming. The woman says the receptionist also accused her of shouting, telling her, “You screamed at me,” despite her insistence that she never raised her voice. She asked the guard to pull up the hospital’s CCTV footage, saying it would show how she’d been treated from the moment she arrived.

According to her, other people nearby who witnessed the exchange spoke up on her behalf and pushed back against the idea of having her removed. She says she has since filed a formal complaint over the encounter, adding that some people working in healthcare “should not be allowed to work in the health sector.” She has since filed a formal complaint, a step that has led to a formal review in another patient’s case.

Commenters were equally unimpressed with the receptionist’s response. One wrote, “Can’t die from abdominal pain” is ridiculous because you definitely can, while another pointed out that an ambulance had already been sent after the situation was assessed. A third simply urged the woman not to let the incident go, writing, “DO NOT DROP THIS – STAND YOUR GROUND AND GET HER SACKED.”

For now, the hospital in question hasn’t been named publicly, and there’s no indication yet of any official response to the complaint.