Nurse Found Asleep As Dementia Patient Goes Missing

Following an eight day contested hearing before the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), Douglas Lloyd successfully proved that a registrant nurse was sleeping on duty whilst an elderly patient had wandered away from the care home in which she worked.

The nurse was discovered by a police officer who had earlier found a 91 year old dementia patient wandering the streets of Newcastle in winter at 3am, barefoot and wearing only her nightgown. The officer returned the patient to a local nursing home and, upon entering, found the nurse and other members of staff asleep in the lounge.

The panel imposed the maximum period of suspension on the registrant, who had vehemently denied the charges. http://1mcb.com/news/2015/02/04/nurse_found_asleep_as_dementia_patient_goes_missing/