Nurse guilty of misconduct
A mental health nurse wept after he was found guilty of misconduct for failing to take proper care of a paranoid schizophrenic patient who committed suicide while he was on duty.
John Turver, 58, broke down as he told a disciplinary panel at the Nursing and Midwifery Council in London, "it's been a difficult time."
-
John Turver
The panel ruled the fitness to practise of Turver and another nurse, Katherine Banks, was impaired because of their misconduct. Banks did not attend the hearing.
The nurses, with almost 60 years of experience between them, failed to assess the patient when they took over on the nightshift at Green Lane Hospital in Devizes on March 11, 2006.
The paranoid schizophrenic patient committed suicide while they played computer games, watched TV and had a haircut on duty at the mental health unit.
Turver played Who Wants to be a Millionaire? on a games console, while senior nurse Banks had her haircut.
At the start of their night shift in 2006 the pair decided to cut the observation time of the patient down from half-an-hour to every hour and then did not even do that.
The hearing was told the behaviour of the man, known only as Patient A, had deteriorated during the day.
He removed his clothes on a number of occasions and was apparently hearing voices and hallucinating. Patient A hanged himself in the early hours of March 12, 2006. He was found dead just after 4am.
The panel said of Turver: "It's clear that from all we have heard he has only limited insight into his failings on that particular night. He has sought to justify his actions and omissions."
The panel will decide on disciplinary action on Friday.
After a ruling of impairment, Turver gave evidence in his defence, but broke down as he said: "It's been a very difficult time. I've spent 40 years nursing which has been a huge part of my life, fortunately I've never been in this situation before.
"Since the incident I have probably been more reflective in my practice, probably more careful with my practice."
The father of a two-year-old and a two-month-old was dismissed from his job after disciplinary proceedings were launched by Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust.
He now works for Rapid and Secure, which specialises in the movement of people with mental health difficulties.
Asked where he saw himself in the future, Turver said: "I don't really know, I'm not seeing any further than this week to be perfectly honest."
He added: "Despite everything that's happened and all the stress over the past three years which has been caused at home and work I feel I'm confident enough to do my job and I feel I do it well."
Both Turver, of Trowbridge, and Banks, of Corsham, denied the allegations of misconduct.
But the hearing also found that Turver had allowed another member of staff to cut Banks' hair, meaning there were no nurses available at the nurses' station.
Banks, the senior nurse on duty, was found to have reacted poorly to the alarm when the patient's body was found, and could not recall where she was or what she was doing.
Banks' only mitigation put before the panel was an email which read: "I feel I can't attend as the past four years has put me under extreme physical and mental strain and my GP is concerned that appearing at this hearing would set me back irrevocably."
She said that despite 18 years in service with an unblemished record she had no intention of reregistering to get back into her career.
She resigned from her post before disciplinary proceedings had reached their conclusion.
Comments
by Simon White, Trowbridge,Wiltshire.
Friday, February 13 2009, 2:08PM
“I was already a qualified registered general nurse-rgn & in 1992 I did my post registration psychiatric nurse training at Guy's Hospital,London.Also in 1997, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder & have been an inpatient in Green Lane Hospital.
Sadly ,from the position of psychiatric staff nurse & psychiatric patient I can say this type of misconduct is quite common.I returned to general nursing on ENT,at the Royal United hospital Bath in 1996 after being totally disillusioned with psychiatry but it was too late as the depression brought on by bad management & lazy co workers was treated with seroxat(ssri)& turned into drug induced mania(now bipolar) & I was medically retired in December 1998.
After an overdose in 1999,I refused to go to Green Lane Hospital stating all they do is feed you & give you tablets & as it is also full of disturbed people-I was better off at home.
Some nurses just do not care(it is a myth they all do),some have cared too much(& become burnt out) & I salute those kind hearted & dedicated nurse who put patients first-yes I have met many of those to!
In a job where suffering humanity is ever present it is only prudent to protect oneslf,otherwise you will cease to function but 'some' nurses take this further into the realm of not fullfilling their job description.In an NHS(gang/street) culture where whistlblowers are despised,poor performers can get away with it for years .Nobody grasses.
It is simply lack of professionalism...of course most nurses will have to cut corners due to increased dependency of patients & reduced staff due to sickness but some do it all the time.
That is why throwing more money & staff at the NHS problems does not work,despite all the targets & management reforms.......if no one supervises-then the workers(?) please themselves following their natural inclination to put in 40% or 100%.The NHS has too many weak managers.”