Nurse’s appeal against striking-off order dismissed by High Court

In a recent decision by the High Court, Mr Justice Dexter Dias dismissed the appeal of the Appellant nurse against the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), upholding her removal from the professional register following findings of serious misconduct.

The Appellant nurse, with over three decades of experience, was employed as an agency nurse at Fulford Nursing Home in York. The disciplinary proceedings stemmed from incidents during a night shift in April 2019, where she was found to have administered medication improperly to sleeping residents without introducing herself or explaining the medication. Additionally, she failed to document the unexpected death of a resident and provide necessary details to emergency services. Further charges included working while subject to an interim suspension order and breaching conditions of a practice order by failing to secure supervision and misrepresenting her compliance to the NMC.

The NMC’s Fitness to Practise Committee found multiple allegations proved and imposed a striking-off order, followed by an 18-month interim suspension. The Appellant nurse appealed under Article 38(1) of the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001, challenging the panel’s refusal to adjourn the July 2023 hearing, the misconduct findings, and the sanctions imposed.

Central to the appeal was the Appellant nurse’s claim that she was denied a fair hearing due to her inability to secure legal representation. She argued that her financial constraints and unresolved DBS certification prevented her from hiring counsel. However, the court found that she had ample time—nearly two years—to arrange representation and had failed to take reasonable steps to do so. Her explanations regarding income, school fees for dependents abroad, and efforts to secure legal aid were inconsistent and unsupported by evidence.

Justice Dias ruled that the panel’s refusal to adjourn was not procedurally unfair. He noted that the medical evidence provided by the Appellant nurse to justify her absence was inadequate and failed to meet the standards required for adjournment. The court also found no merit in her challenges to the panel’s factual findings, which were based on credible witness testimony and her own limited participation in the disciplinary hearing.

The appeal was dismissed in its entirety, affirming the NMC’s decision to strike the Appellant nurse from the nursing register.

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