As she was told to leave Franciscan Health Crown Point and had to give birth in her car, Mercedes Wells said she felt less than human.

Now, she wants the hospital staff to be held accountable for their actions.

“Essentially, I was stripped of my dignity,” Wells said. “I was stripped of my dignity as a person and treated like an animal. I almost felt like (the nurse) wanted me to suffer because she watched me suffer and knows how hard labor can be.”

At about midnight on Sunday, Wells arrived at Franciscan Health Crown Point to give birth to her fourth daughter, Alena. She remained at the hospital for about six hours before hospital staff told her that labor wasn’t progressing enough, and she was told to leave.

While Wells and her husband were on their way to Community Hospital in Munste

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