The High Court upheld the NMB’s revocation of the registration of a public health nurse who had consistently failed to perform official duties.
The registration was lost to a health worker who made a serious mistake in keeping a record, including filing screening documentation for newborns.
The High Court confirmed that the records of many of the children in the care of this nurse were never included in the public health monitoring system.
Justice Mary Irwin, President of the High Court, observed that it was a matter of concern that newborns were not included in the public health care system.
The Irish Board of Nursing and Midwifery told the court that the decision to cancel the registration was based on the Fitness to Practice Committee’s finding that the nurse was mentally ill.
The committee had recommended that the defect could not be controlled by counseling or censorship and therefore had no other option but to cancel the registration.
Their attitude was that they had no idea about the consequences of their actions or their misbehavior, and it is considered as a serious state of mind.
She cannot be considered qualified or safe to work in any field of nursing or midwifery. The committee also found that the nurse’s behavior was harmful to infants and children.
Despite repeated meetings, counseling, and training for more than three years, the nurse’s behavioral disability was not resolved.
The committee said allowing the nurse to continue the practice would cause problems for the general public, especially children and infants.
The Fitness to Practice Committee had made a number of findings regarding the misconduct of public health nurse. No records were kept in a timely manner, including screening documentation of newborns.
Hospital documents were handled with complete negligence and were often found in cars and at home.
It was her habit to decide on his own that none of these documents were needed. The committee also found that this was how they had worked for five years at two different health centers.
The court found that the findings were valid and upheld the deregistration of the public health nurse.