A mental health nurse who was caught on camera by an undercover reporter saying a patient 'needed a good thrashing' has been struck off. Emma Elizabeth Doherty, a former deputy ward manager at the Edenfield Centre in Prestwich, was one of a dozen staff members sacked after a BBC Panorama documentary exposed a catalogue of abuse at the NHS secure psychiatric hospital. The unit was shut to new patients after the programme aired in September 2022 as a number of internal, independent and criminal investigations began.
Undercover footage reveals abusive comments
A disciplinary tribunal heard Ms Doherty was filmed by the BBC saying one patient, referred to as 'Service User A', 'needed a good thrashing' and should be sent to prison as she would 'soon be brought down a peg or two'. She was also caught on camera saying of the same patient: 'She's not to have anything? That's grand. That's fine. I'm not ar**d, she'll be getting f*** all off me.' Ms Doherty was also filmed describing another patient, referred to as 'Service User B', as a 'pain in the ar*e'. When another nurse had said she had been close to giving Service User B an overdose to harm them, Doherty replied: 'I would have gone through her.'
Failure to act on derogatory comments
The Nursing and Midwifery Council fitness to practice committee also heard that Ms Doherty, who as deputy ward manager was the most senior person on shift at the time, 'did not take adequate action' when she witnessed a support worker making 'derogatory' comments about Service User B. Mohsin Malik, representing the Nursing and Midwifery Council, said the Panorama documentary had a 'huge impact' on patients and the families, who witnessed what was said about their loved ones. Mr Malik said that while giving evidence Ms Doherty blamed the BBC for causing harm to patients as she had never intended them to hear her comments.
Lack of responsibility and toxic culture
That, Mr Malik said, showed Ms Doherty had not 'fully taken responsibility' for her actions. Mr Malik described the comments as 'abusive and degrading' and said they risked 'enticing violence' against a vulnerable patient. Ignoring her colleague's derogatory remarks showed Ms Doherty was 'part of the culture of the unit', Mr Malik added. Giving evidence to the committee, Ms Doherty described the culture at the Edenfield Centre as 'toxic' and expressed her 'genuine remorse' at her actions. She told the tribunal her comments were born out of 'frustration' and feeling 'over-whelmed' at the unit being short-staffed.
Nurse blames understaffing for remarks
She said: 'We were understaffed with a lack of support and resources to allow us to express our emotions. Staffing levels and burn out was discussed with management and operational management which appeared to fall on deaf ears as nothing seemed to be done about it. Staff became accepting of the low staffing levels and stopped raising it due to it being a regular occurrence… The culture on the ward was one where staff worked to get by. Morale was low and people were burnt out and frustrated.'
Panel rules misconduct, nurse struck off
In a written ruling the panel said that while Ms Doherty was doing 'difficult and challenging' work, her comments put patients at 'unwarranted risk of psychological, emotional and physical harm'. Ruling her actions amounted to misconduct and had brought the profession into disrepute they ordered Ms Doherty be struck off the Nursing and Midwifery Council register.
