A Christian nurse at Oregon Health & Science University Hospital (OHSU) says administrators initially refused to approve her employee group unless she removed prayer, Bible study and other religious activities and changed it from a Christian group to an interfaith organization.
Suzie Logue said she created the group in early 2025 after connecting with other Christian employees who wanted a place to pray, study Scripture and encourage one another during difficult shifts.
She says OHSU told her the group could be approved only if it removed its religious elements and said it could not use hospital resources or campus buildings.
“I naturally wrote back and said, ‘No, we’re a Christian group. We would like to be allowed to pray and do Bible study and do these other worship activities using campus resources,’” Logue told Fox News Digital in an interview Tuesday.
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Logue said the hospital told her the group couldn’t use any campus resources or campus buildings even when other religious groups were being allowed to do so.
“When I said, ‘What policy are we citing here? Why can’t we do this?’ I was met with silence,” Logue said. “And when I kept pushing over the weeks, they wrote back to me and said, ‘Well, your charter is being reviewed now by hospital legal,’ and that is when I reached out to First Liberty.”
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Logue said she was shocked by what she viewed as the hospital’s casual handling of the situation. She said other religious employee groups were permitted to use campus facilities for prayer and worship, while she received little explanation for why the Christian group was treated differently.
After Logue contacted First Liberty Institute, the organization sent OHSU a demand letter. Logue says the hospital ultimately approved the group as Christian and allowed it to use hospital resources for prayer and worship.
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Logue says the group has since grown rapidly through word of mouth, giving Christian employees a support network inside the hospital.
“Part of the reason I wanted to start the group is because I was connecting with other Christians at the hospital,” Logue said. “As you can imagine, Portland and working in Portland can be a pretty tough place to be a Christian. And I was starting to connect with other Christians just in my daily work, and they’d say, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s so nice to know there’s other, other Christians here. We should try and get together sometimes just for encouragement.’
“And, so, what we’ve seen come out of this group, it’s interesting because even despite the challenges we faced getting this group started, it has grown exponentially, a lot of (it) by word of mouth because we lack some visibility, but a lot of people find that there’s more light they feel like when they go to their shift because they know there’s someone they can connect with mid-shift if they have a really difficult patient situation,” she said.
Cliff Martin, senior counsel at First Liberty, told Fox News Digital in a statement on Wednesday, “Federal law mandates that employees of all faiths be respected in the workplace. Even so, OHSU displayed a clear pattern of discrimination and hostility toward Ms. Logue’s Christian employee resource group by denying them visibility on the company website, companywide messaging, equal stipend payment and fair descriptions of religious holidays.
“We are happy to say that, since July, the issues have mostly been resolved, and the Christian resource group should receive the same support every other group receives.”
In a statement to Fox News Digital, OHSU said, “Employee Resource Groups are OHSU-sponsored and employee-managed groups. ERGs provide opportunities for career development, social support, networking, mentoring, community participation, cultural awareness and employee engagement. There are 15 ERGs at OHSU, including the Christian ERG, which was formed in 2025.
“Per OHSU policy, any group of at least three employees may request to be considered to form a new ERG,” the hospital continued. “Emerging ERGs must identify potential goals of the group and craft a mission statement. The mission statement and goals must be reviewed and may need to be adapted to align with OHSU policies prior to approval.
“Each ERG operates with institutional support, and recognition entitles access to institution-owned or controlled facilities for meetings and events, in accordance with policy. To maintain recognition, an ERG shall serve to build a positive and inclusive environment, and remain in compliance with OHSU policies.”