Nurses from Blackpool Victoria Hospital jailed
They were sedating patients on the stroke ward unnecessarily
Two former healthcare professionals who unlawfully drugged patients at a Blackpool hospital and bragged about it to others have been jailed.
54 year old Catherine Hudson, of Coriander Close and 48 year old Charlotte Wilmot, of Bowland Crescent in the town were sentenced at Preston Crown Court.
A third former healthcare professional, 46 year old Marek Grabianowski, from Bispham, pleaded guilty ahead of trial and was also sentenced today.
Two further healthcare professionals, who previously pleaded guilty were sentenced last year
Police had launched an investigation in November 2018 after a student nurse raised concerns about the treatment of patients on the stroke unit at Blackpool Victoria Hospital.
The whistle blower nurse had been working with Hudson when she saw her give non-prescribed Zopiclone to a patient. When the nurse questioned Hudson, she was told not to worry about it as the patient was not for resuscitation and would not be ‘opened up’ if she died.
Following further investigation, it was found Hudson, who had worked on the stroke unit at Blackpool Victoria Hospital as a senior nurse, had needlessly sedated patients between 2017 and 2018 with Wilmot, an assistant practitioner, encouraging her to do so.
Staff members were arrested during the course of the investigation and their mobile devices seized. A review of their messages revealed a significant number of exchanges describing patients and their families in the most derogatory and cruellest terms. In one message, Wilmot said a patient needed sedating ‘to high heaven’ with Hudson boasting to others about sedating another patient to ‘within an inch of her life’.
Both women would also steal drugs from the hospital and sometimes give them to patients unnecessarily.
Hudson and Wilmot admitted conspiring to steal, with Hudson admitting a further offence of perverting the course of justice.
Following a trial, Hudson was found guilty of three counts of ill treatment and one count of conspiracy to ill-treat and Wilmot found guilty of conspiracy to ill-treat and encouraging Hudson to sedate a patient.
Hudson was sentenced to seven years and two months in prison and Wilmot sentenced to three years in prison.
Grabianowski admitted three offences of conspiring to steal from employer and one offence of perverting the course of justice. He was handed a 14 month sentence.
Det Ch Insp Jill Johnston, of Lancashire Police, said:
“Today’s sentencings reflect the serious abuse of trust, both from staff towards patients and staff towards the hospital with the theft of drugs.
“The families of the victims expected their loved ones to be looked after and cared for in a place of safety.
“The reality was the opposite.
“For a loved one to enter hospital is often a difficult and worrying time for their relatives. For two nurses to behave this way is sickening. They were both fully aware of the risks, which makes their behaviour even harder to comprehend.
“Hudson’s offending was particularly calculated, all while portraying herself as a role model nurse. This could not be further from the truth.
“I would like to pass on my thanks to the victims and their families, for the way that they have supported this investigation and to the investigative team, which has worked tirelessly to help give justice to those involved.”