Callous care home nurse is struck off
She left frail patient lying on floor in a cold room all night
A NURSE who left a frail dementia patient to lie on the floor in a cold room overnight has been struck off.
The pensioner, known as Resident A, got locked in his room at about midnight and was found on the floor under a quilt and covered in vomit at 8.30am the next day.
Lindiwe Linah Malape was working the night shift at Fairfield Care Home in Inverness when the incident took place in 2014.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council found that she had failed to report the incident to the care home manager and didn’t call out a handyman to free the trapped patient.
She also failed to contact emergency services.
The patient, who required half-hourly checks due to his vulnerable condition, was found with red marks on the bony parts of his body.
Concerned colleagues raised the alarm and Malape was initially suspended by the NMC for 12 months. She failed to cooperate with the NWC who have now decided to strike her off the register.
A decision notice said: “The panel were satisfied that Miss Malape’s actions amount to a serious departure from the relevant professional standards.
“She behaved in a manner that could have foreseeably resulted in harm and violated Resident A’s rights.
“She has shown a persistent lack of insight into the seriousness or consequences of her actions.
“The panel therefore conclude that a striking-off order is the appropriate and proportionate sanction in this case.”