I'm here to tell you about the NHS cover up of a male nurse who raped a patient in a mental health unit

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

A friend sent me a link to this story last week and it’s really stayed with me - and I think given the horror and injustice of it, more people should know.

Warning: it’s very distressing.

It’s a historic case that began in the 80’s when a 21 year old woman who was sectioned in Cumbria to an NHS mental health inpatient unit after experiencing psychosis. During her time she was groomed and raped by a male nurse 14 years her senior. She became pregnant a year into her stay and the team at the hospital arranged a crisis abortion for her. it was never part of her mental health record and her family were not told. She did tell her mum everything when she was released, but her mum took no action and told no one - it seems at the time she thought things were best left alone (remember this is the 80’s attitudes were very different).

Three years later, whilst she was an inpatient in another mental health hospital, Alison committed suicide.

Her parents and siblings have spent the last 3 decades labouring for answers and justice. A lot of things have happened in that time but the essentials are that in 2001 the family asked the police to investigate the matter after uncovering evidence. But In 2002 the CPS decided not to take the case forward.

Alison’s family continued to fight and in 2015 the police reopened the investigation. More evidence was gathered, including witness statements from staff. In 2017, Alison’s rapist was questioned under caution and confessed to his crimes. He said, and I quote “I was unaware I was doing anything wrong”. ex-colleagues spoke to the police with one saying:

“It became apparent after a very short time that he was spending more time with Alison than any other patient. He had to be spoken with on more than one occasion regarding the time he spent with her. Concerns were raised and Alison was witnessed entering the Male nurse’s residence where he was living at the time....one meeting resulted in him being clearly told that his behaviour was inappropriate and the matter would be formally reported. Alison was a young female who was extremely ill and disturbed at the time. However, he continued.”

There were seemingly a lot of cover ups along the way - missing medical records, missing notes, plenty of other staff who knew including senior psychiatrists etc.

Despite the confession and supporting evidence the CPS decided not to prosecute. The family’s appeal was thrown out. Alison’s rapist has walked free. The NHS it seems have apologised to the family a couple of years ago - but no one has been held accountable for what happened to Alison.

My point in posting this here is to get word out and raise awareness that these things do happen in the trusted care of professionals. It may be a historical case but shows the poor culture of the NHS at the time and it’s important we never stop talking about these things.

The family have raised enough money and launched an appeal to have a new inquest into Alison’s death. They’re waiting on the outcome of that decision. The full story is here https://alisonsstory.wordpress.com/what-happened-in-2001/

I suppose there isn’t a lot more we can do except show support to Alison’s family and talk about these things in the vain hope people like Alison aren’t forgotten.

Floralbunting your words have been richocheing around my head all day, yr absolutely correct. Men should never be providing care to vulnerable women. There are so many battles to fight, trans nonsense, surrogacy, prostitution and also the basic protection of vulnerable women. I can’t imagine how frustrating it is for you to hear this has happened again, needlessly. Are there any advocacy groups working on this do you know? I’m so sorry this happened to you, I am listening and want to change the framework that allowed this to happen .

Mixed sex wards in healthcare is a dereliction of safeguarding. Men should never be providing personal care to vulnerable women. I think there’s a strong argument that vulnerable patients should not ever be attended by a lone staff member.

I know a man who was sexually assaulted repeatedly by a male healthcare worker when he was physically immobile due to injuries, very heavily medicated and unable to speak. He did not prosecute because of many reasons but one of them was he was so heavily medicated it made his experiences unreliable. I can’t believe that was a unique experience. It’s terrifying to consider what could be happening to vulnerable patients when the only cases that seem to get to court are the ones where there is DNA from pregnancy.

happydappy I don't know of any specific groups myself, though they may well exist. I have been able to share my story as part of various bits of engagement with parliamentarians about the issue of single sex provision in hospitals. I'd certainly like to do more, but it's all about access and ability. Unfortunately, those of us who have had mental health issues at any point in our lives already have a mountain to climb before we are heard, let alone given any opportunity to effect change.

I can believe this. I’ve been a nurse for a long time and nothing surprises me anymore. I had to be very forceful last week to take over from a male nurse giving personal care to a young woman. Practically had to manoeuvre him out of the bed area. He was agency staff that I had never met before. None of the male nurses on my ward would do that. We have a very strong culture of aiming to match patients with the sex of the nurse

As ever it’s the ones who want to force themselves into women’s spaces who are the issue. DH is a HCA and goes out of his way to avoid carrying out personal care on women, and if he is asked to he always always double checks the woman is actually ok with it. He knows the majority of women don’t want him carrying out personal care for them and he’s fine with that, because he’s not an asshole.

It’s the men who feel entitled to be there, the ones who demand, the ones who quietly manipulate and manoeuvre their way into positions of power who are the issue but, as I keep saying to anyone who will listen, how can you tell what sort of man they are? How can you tell if it’s someone decent like DH or someone awful? You can’t. So you mitigate the risk by excluding all men. All men. Everyone born male, no matter how they identify. IDGAF if they’re offended. If 20 men being offended prevent 1 woman from sexual assault I’m all for it. If 200 offended men, 2000, whatever, protect 1 single woman, let’s go for it. We should not have any situations where female patients are raped by those supposedly caring for them.

Floral

" I firmly believe that until men as a class can lower their rates of violence against women then they need to be separated from the most vulnerable ones". Thank you OP for saying this so clearly. Especially putting it back to men to solve their own problem. And all women can be vulnerable to male violence and need that protection until they solve their problem.

All healthcare wards with the exception of intensive care should be single sex. That we don't have this, and further that this doesn't seem to apply to mental health wards, is appalling. I'm so sorry to the PPs who have experienced the consequences of this negligence. I cannot imagine the terror of being stuck somewhere with a rapist, it is nothing short of torture.