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Nurse 'talked on mobile during tests'
Benedict Moore-Bridger27.10.08
A NURSE has been suspended after allegedly chatting to a friend on a mobile phone while performing blood tests on a patient.
Calista Ukaegbu is being investigated after apparently using hand gestures to direct the female patient because she was so engrossed in her conversation.
When the patient a relative of former newspaper editor and radio station owner Kelvin Mackenzie made her displeasure clear, the nurse simply mouthed "sorry" and carried on chatting, it was claimed.
She only stopped the call when a colleague walked in and "shamed" her into hanging up.
It emerged today that bosses at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich had suspended the nurse.
The incident happened when the patient, in her thirties, visited the hospital to have a blood test before undergoing minor surgery at a later date.
She claimed she was greeted by Nurse Ukaegbu, talking on the phone in a foreign language, who indicated she should roll up her sleeve to have her blood pressure taken. Once the readings were taken she pointed to a wall chart indicating that she should measure herself, it was alleged.
Mr Mackenzie said his relative, who did not want to be named, had wanted to ask the nurse questions as she had suffered from high blood pressure, but was denied the opportunity because of the six-minute phone call.
He said: "Incredibly, for six minutes this nurse held a social conversation on her mobile phone while indicating to my relative through hand signals what to do.
"All this went on while this nurse continued with her conversation with a friend. It was quite clear it was a social conversation from the tone of her voice. It was nothing to do with work."
He said the call only ended when a second nurse came into the room and stared at Nurse Ukaegbu.
Nurse Ukaegbu, from Woolwich, is understood to have arrived in Britain from Nigeria in 2000 and qualified to work in British hospital in 2002.
A spokesman for the hospital said: "We have received a complaint and the actual allegations made are pretty appalling.
"We have taken immediate action to look into this case and should be able to report on our findings within 25 days.
"If proved the appropriate disciplinary action would be taken."
Reader views (16)
I think we are turning a small problem into a very massive problem. I have been excused several times by doctors and hospital staff just because they have to answer their mobile phones. Mrs Ukaegbu made a simple mistake, a mistake 30% of our nurses and doctors make all the time without a problem. Obviously she must have copied this bad practice from her superiors. If she has to go down so also about 30% of our doctors and nurses who indulge in these bad practices. This is a very common practice in UK hospitals especially amongst GP surgeries. Infact consultants are the main culprits. The only antidote is to stop every nurse, doctors and hospital staff from entering hospital premises with their mobile phones. I know this is an impossibility but it is the only way. This is a national problem in our health service since the emergence of the mobile phone culture. People should not judge her based on race/colour but rather on the issue at stake and how to stop it. She is not the first person and will never be the last. Therefore the NHS should not use her as a scapegoat because her colour does not fit in.
In my opinion, there is a race issue here, because the patient accepted Mrs Ukaegbu’s apologies, but why she still went ahead and reported her is what I see as a race problem. If Mrs Ukaegbu was a white person, I don’t think this would have gone this far because it is a common practice in UK hospitals.
- Echi, London Uk
This issue is been exaggerated. How rare is it to see a member of staff at a hospital on a mobile phone? it isn't, as a matter of fact, my sister works in the theatres of the hospital where this incident occured. Do you know how many times surgeons and members of staff pick up private phone calls which has nothing to do with their profession in the middle of life risking surgeries? I don't know why this is the time the issue is been raised? If anything is to be done, the hospital's code of conduct needs to be reviewed and REINFORCED. Its just unfortunate it had to be another black african to be used as a scape goat.
- Danky, London
I think that this nurse is being jugded because of her colour. I mean she didn't kill anybody and it wasn't an operaion so therefore it is not that big of a deal . I doubt she is the only nurse talking the phone during work. As for the rascist comment about how they should train therir own nurses, that may not be possible because us ' foreigners' are much more smarter than their own nurses.
- Natasha, London
OK this isnt to do with race or were you come form as some have insinuated. This is about attitude.
This women is more interested in her own life and less interested in what she is paid to do. This is a growing problem in the workforce or today.
Were I work I see people, of all ages, who are quite happy to turn up, not even do the bare minimum and when they ask for a pay rise and you look shocked they have no idea!
If you want the job work hard in the job!
- Stuart, Luton, UK
Third world staff equals Third world standards.
Only our selves to blame for allowing it to happen.
- Kedge, Marlboro wilts
Unfortunately it's the rare few who cause headlines like this, and the reputation of every NHS front-line worker suffers because of it. If the allegation is true this nurse should be severely reprimanded and she should be left in no doubt as to the work ethic expected of every nurse in British hospitals
- Mark, Kingston upon Thames
I don't know what this lady's qualification is, RN/EN/(non-nursing), it makes no difference. I couldn't care less where she came from. There is no excuse for her inattention to what she was doing while dealing with patient care of any kind.
I trained as an RN at that hospital when it was military - we would have been in serious trouble, and rightly so, for similar misconduct. Its not a matter of military (back then) or even professional (current) discipline. It is about integrity and a committment to the patients, that "patient care" thing..
The guy who mentioned the shortage of nursing and that people should just be thankful for those that have come from abroad to care for the UK patients? Are you serious? Bad practice is bad practice nomatter who does it, and needs to be rooted out before it causes serious problems, either as an example set for a lowering of standards or on an individual basis from patient to patient.
Nurses and ancilliary staff are there to care for the patients. They should do so or be sacked. End of story.
- Rogan, Irving
Is it only patients and visitors who are not allowed to use mobile phones because they interfer with diognostic machines ?......I hope the reading of this patient was accurate
- Jean Doherty, salford england
This is not uncommon. I am pregnant and when attending my midwife appointments, whilst engaged in confidential medical conversations, having blood drawn, and being examined my midwife answered her phone numerous times and several different people barged into the room unannounced.
During my last 20 minute appointment we were interrupted by mobile phone calls or by a person simply walking in the room no less than 10 times. I felt truly demeaned and do not believe I was receiving adequate medical attention.
- Lori, London
i once broke my neck in a motorcycle accident and was left in a hospital corridor completely naked while members of the puplic walked past,at the time i was unable to move and nurses kept walking past without taking any notice,it was only a good samaritan that came to my rescue and covered me up and called for the head nurse .
- Peter, Hartlepool United Kingdom
Lets not heap too much blame on this nurse. We don't know anything about her except that(according to Kelvin MacKenzie)she apparently did these things. Coming to Britain she would find herself totally immersed in our mobile-phone culture and would see other nurses on private calls all the time. It should have been made clear to her that making extended personal calls while she is on duty, or using her mobile phone in a way that distracts her from her work, would be a disciplinary matter. The NHS depends on the work of nurses like Calista Ukaegbu and obviously standards need to be improved all-round. However, she is not necessarily a bad nurse.
- Jeffrey, London
This is appalling but I'm also shocked by the patient - it sounds as though this was someone who was conscious so why on earth did she allow the nurse to deal with her?
- Suzanne, London
The hospital wants to check her credentials. Why do we persist in using these foreigners ? can't we train our own doctors and nurses ?
- Squiz, Islington
After my friend had a baby in a hospital in the same area, she was left in pain, laying on bloodied bed sheets whilst the nurses and midwives spoke to each other in a foreign language, completely ignored her and largely treated her with contempt. Her husband found her in tears.
- We, UK
How disgracefull, what is the health service coming to , patients bieng treated like animals in this way , this person should be dismissed immediatly and the lady who suffered this humiliation properly compensated for her distress.
- Brian, Wiltshire
So the NHS has installed pay phones for patients to use at enormous expense to them because allegedly no one should use a mobile in a hospital but nurses apparently can chat with impunity on their mobiles and not even be professional enough to terminate their conversation when attending a patient.
- Patricia, LONDON
