Nurse Sacked From Care Home ‘Swore And Abused Residents’

A nurse who swore repeatedly at work was sacked after she told a Wirral pensioner: “Talk to the hand, coz the face ain’t listening.”

Amanda Pote, 39, is accused of repeatedly using the F- word in front of shocked colleagues at the Belvedere Nursing Home, in Wallasey.

She also failed to act after a male colleague was seen stroking an elderly resident’s breasts at the home, the Nursing and Midwifery Council heard.

Pote faces a string of allegations, including slapping a confused old man, verbally abusing residents and swearing as she carried out a drugs round. She was also seen roughly handling a patient by shoving him into his wheelchair without any warning beforehand, the hearing was told.

Matron Karen Pickford told the panel she received numerous complaints about Pote in the month leading up to her dismissal.

’I had been told by the home proprietor that Amanda had slapped a service user and had admitted she had done this and was on a final written warning.

‘On several occasions she allegedly spoke to service users inappropriately,’ Mrs Pickford said.

‘I was off duty on 18 May 2003 when some of the staff had reported to Amanda Pote that one of the carers from an agency had inappropriately bear hugged ‘resident F’ and also supposedly touched her breast.

‘The allegations were reported to Amanda Pote and she said she had reported them to the deputy manager.’

She added that staff had reported allegations to Pote about a male carer from an agency who had “inappropriately bear hugged” a resident.

But Pote, the deputy manager at the home, denied she knew anything about those allegations.

The male assistant was then reported to the police and Pote was suspended.

Days before her suspension Mrs Pickford received more complaints regarding the nurse.

“There was a matter reported to me by Nurse Karen Brown who heard Amanda say to a resident ‘get your f—–g legs into the lift’.

“She then spoke to ‘resident E’ and supposedly said to her ‘speak to the hand coz the face ain’t listening’.”

The hearing was told Pote was sacked after the “speak to the hand’’ incident on 29 May 2003.

Earlier Tanwyn James, for the NMC, detailed a series of incidents dating from July 2002 until her dismissal.

‘On 31 July 2002 there was an incident in respect of resident A when it was alleged that the respondent had slapped him.

‘In a meeting she admitted slapping the man’s leg but said she did this after the resident had hit and kicked her and a care assistant.’

Pote apologised for her actions but her behaviour got worse, the hearing was told.

Ms James continued: ‘On an unknown date in March 2003 it was alleged the respondent used inappropriate language in the presence of resident B.

‘She had taken the resident to the hearing aid clinic and on their return nurse Karen Brown answered the door to them.

‘The respondent was very annoyed and said to nurse Brown ‘she forgot her f*****g hearing aid.’

Mrs James added: ‘During the course of a drugs round the respondent kept on banging on the trolley and repeated the word ‘f**k’.’

The nurse, from Birkenhead, is not attending the hearing, and has not admitted any of the allegations against her.

She faces being banned from the profession permanently if the NMC find her guilty of misconduct.

The hearing continues.