A nurse is set to be struck off after a Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) tribunal found she made antisemitic comments about Jewish patients being 'tight with money'. Helen Oluyemisi Balogun, who worked for the Priory Group, was found to have made the remarks in 2023, referring to a Jewish patient as 'tight with money' and correlating this with his religion.
The tribunal heard that Ms Balogun made a similar comment about another Jewish patient on a separate occasion. She also told a Jewish colleague words to the effect of 'Jews don't believe in Jesus', despite denying this. The colleague stated that Ms Balogun had made similar half-joking comments in the past, which were hurtful.
In addition, Ms Balogun sang Christian hymns near the same colleague, creating an intimidating environment. She also referred to a patient's partner as 'half-caste', which the tribunal found offensive. The panel noted a consistent pattern of minimising her antisemitic comments.
Ms Balogun, who qualified as a nurse in 2009, expressed remorse through her representative. She has been given an interim suspension order and will be permanently removed from the nursing register unless she successfully appeals.
