The target of the abuse said she felt unvalued, isolated and put down and did not want to go to work at St Mary’s Hospital
A nurse has been suspended for 12 months after calling a colleague a “Polish cow” and an “old woman”.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) said Cynthia Njoku’s actions fell seriously short of the conduct and standards expected for a nurse and amounted to misconduct.
They said her comments were racist, ageist and amounted to bullying and that she was unfit to practise on public interest grounds. Miss Njoku denied the allegations and claimed she only supervised the colleague, known only as Person A, on two occasions.
During a hearing in October and November, Person A said she was subjected to xenophobic behaviour from colleagues, including Miss Njoku, while working in a respiratory ward at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington in 2021.
Person A said the senior nurse called her a “Polish cow”, “Polish idiot”, “swine nose”, “stupid old cow” and an “old woman” and complained to managers but no investigation took place.
Person A said the encounter left them feeling “very nervous” whenever Miss Njoku was on duty and would avoid getting her help in case they were reprimanded and insulted for making a mistake.
When the junior nurse reported the incident to a matron on the ward, it was suggested they were taking things “too personally”, according to an NMC report. Person A said this left them feeling unvalued, ignored and put down and they did not want to go to work.
Miss Njoku said she was never frustrated or annoyed with Person A but an email exchange between her and the ward matron showed the senior nurse expressing frustration working with Person A.
In oral evidence, she also said other colleagues had issues with Person A and that it was difficult to communicate with them. The watchdog said Miss Njoku’s senior position made it likely she would have supervised Person A on more than two occasions.
The panel also noted Miss Njoku’s request not to be rostered with Person A, which was granted seemingly without any investigation or attempt by management to resolve the conflict. It also said there was no evidence the complaints made to the matron were followed up or resolved.
The NMC acknowledged the incidents took place during the Covid pandemic within a busy and stressed ward. They also said there was a poor workplace culture.
The panel wrote: “However, it noted that your behaviour towards Person A was not kind or compassionate and fell short of what is expected of a senior nurse. The panel considered that your conduct around racism and discrimination was wholly unacceptable and constituted a serious breach of fundamental standards of professional conduct and behaviour that a registered nurse is expected to maintain.
“The panel found that your actions would be seen to be deplorable by other members of the profession and members of the public.”
The watchdog said despite this, there was no concern about Miss Njoku’s ability to practise safely and said there was no evidence of “any clinical concerns”. They did say her behaviour may have impacted patient safety when Person A felt unable to ask for her help.
They threw out the claim Miss Njoku swore at Person A and said her denials did not mean she had no insight into her wrongdoing. But, they said such insight was “limited” and a reflective statement shared with the panel lacked remorse and empathy or an understanding of the “psychological effects” of her behaviour on Person A.
The panel noted that there have been no allegations of further similar misconduct since Person A left the NHS trust and Miss Njoku has continued to practise without restriction since 2021.
The panel said statements of support for Miss Njoku were undated and “very generalised” with some failing to even show knowledge of the allegations.
The panel also said it was not assured Miss Njoku would not repeat the behaviour in the future. Miss Njoku has 28 days to appeal the ruling.
Have you been affected by this? If so, contact Adrian at [email protected].
? Sign up to our daily newsletters for all the latest and greatest from across London here
