Nurse wins settlement after alleged transgender confidentiality breach

A nurse has won a settlement claim from Epsom and St Helier Hospitals NHS Trust after being suspended for allegedly breaching a transgender patient’s confidentiality.

(c) Anthony/Unsplash

(c) Anthony/Unsplash

Jennifer Melle said she had been racially abused by a transgender woman who was born a male after addressing them as ‘Mr'.

Melle told the BBC: ‘I cannot discuss the terms of the settlement, but generally I am glad that my employer has finally decided to extend an olive branch to me.'

The nurse was initially given a written warning, with the trust also writing to the patient to warn them that threatening and racist language was not tolerated.

Melle was later suspended with full, however, after speaking to the media about her experience and potentially breaching patient confidentiality.

A spokesperson for Epsom and St Helier Hospitals NHS Trust said: ‘Racial abuse of our staff is never acceptable, nor is discussing a patient's private medical information publicly.

‘We are sorry that Miss Melle had this experience and we issued a written warning to this patient, but we expect all staff to maintain patient confidentiality at all times.'

An NMC spokesperson said: ‘Our role is to ensure safe and effective nursing and midwifery practice across the UK. While we can't discuss individual cases, we have a duty to look carefully at all concerns that are referred to us and we're committed to making fair, proportionate decisions.'

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