Aberdeen care worker left fallen resident on floor and fell asleep
Emmanuel Onu left the woman alone after a fall at Ruthrieston House and instead took a nap.
Thursday 8 February 2024 12:09, UK
A care home worker who left a stricken resident lying on a corridor floor to have a snooze in the lounge has been reprimanded by a watchdog.
Emmanuel Onu left the woman alone despite being asked to stay by her side after a fall and instead took a nap.
Mr Onu's colleague had gone to call NHS24 for advice after the "vulnerable" resident had fallen.
The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) found Mr Onu's fitness to practise impaired and has placed a one-year warning on their care registration.
The SSSC stated that Mr Onu had "exercised poor judgement" as they did not recognise the risk of harm.
The watchdog said: "While the resident was not presenting as distressed and she was later found not to have any injuries after paramedics attended and assessed her, she is a vulnerable person and she was in a particularly vulnerable situation.
"The resident could have become distressed while she lay alone, or she could have injured herself by trying to stand up."
The misconduct occurred while Mr Onu was working at Ruthrieston House in Aberdeen in June 2022.
The SSSC said: "While you provided an explanation as to why you were more tired than usual on this shift, you chose to leave the resident and to sit in the lounge.
"You could have brought a chair to the corridor, sat on the floor with the resident or stood next to her.
"Had you not left the resident to sit in the lounge, you may not have fallen asleep."
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Mr Onu was said to have fully cooperated with the SSSC's investigation.
The watchdog highlighted that the misconduct occurred in Mr Onu's first registerable role and when they had only been in the job for around four months.
The watchdog said: "You have shown some insight and regret and provided assurances that the behaviour will not be repeated."
Mr Onu's 12-month warning came into effect on Wednesday.