- Ian Brown worked in a care home for mentally ill male offenders.
- He argued that this was more “constructive” than “sitting outside and smoking a cigarette.”
A psychiatric nurse who made four mentally ill patients wash their cars as part of their “treatment” has been stripped of her licence.
Ian Brown, who worked at a care home for mentally ill male offenders in Ipswich, argued the behaviour was more “constructive” than “sitting outside and smoking a cigarette”.
A Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) misconduct hearing found his behaviour to be “deplorable” and “a breach of fundamental principles of the nursing profession”.
Ms Brown qualified as a nurse in February 2018 but concerns were raised at her first workplace over her “unprofessional behaviour” towards both colleagues and patients.
This resulted in an investigation and Brown receiving a final written warning.
He was then redeployed to Foxhall House, Ipswich, in January 2019 and required to implement a six-month development plan focused on “values and behaviour”.
But in August 2019, he took four residents who were hospitalised under the Mental Health Act to clean his car.
Colleague: “I was on the night shift. During the handover, [Mr Brown] He was taking patients to wash their cars and that was not discussed.
‘[Mr Brown] He said it was therapeutic.
Another witness said: “He came into the handover room and while I was taking over he said he had work for a patient that afternoon and was going to get his car washed.”
The disciplinary committee heard that only two of the four patients were allowed to leave hospital.
The hearing was also told that Brown responded to the allegations by saying, “I think washing a car is more constructive than sitting outside smoking a cigarette.”
It was also revealed that Mr Brown left the gate open in September 2021, meaning the patient was “lucky enough to make an escape” before staff were able to bring him back.
He resigned in October 2019 and was consulted by the Nursing and Midwifery Council in November 2020.
The commission concluded that Brown’s conduct amounted to “serious misconduct involving a large number of vulnerable residents, and possibly members of the public”, carried out over a long period of time.
‘[We] “We have determined that this is a flagrant disregard for the norms and deserves condemnation not only from fellow nurses but also from the informed public at large,” they said.
“The committee found that as a result of Mr Brown’s misconduct, vulnerable residents, visitors, members of the public and colleagues were put at risk of physical and psychological harm.”
“Mr Brown’s misconduct violated the fundamental principles of the nursing profession and brought the profession into disrepute.”
The panel said Brown had “deep-rooted attitude problems” and added: “Mr Brown’s conduct falls seriously short of the standards expected of a registered nurse and is fundamentally incompatible with his continuing registration as a registered nurse.”
They therefore concluded that removing him from the nursing register was an “appropriate and proportionate” sanction.
