CUMBRIAN healthcare staff are among the skyrocketing number of nurses and midwives struck off from the profession for misconduct in the last years, with figures nearly double what they were in 2021/22.

The majority of those removed from practice nationally were sacked because of issues relating to patient care. 

Earlier this year, a former nurse at a Cumbrian Hospital was struck off following a hearing by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) following allegations which include incompetence in medicines management and dishonesty.

Despite headlines of dwindling NHS staff numbers, the number of nurses and midwives on the official register has risen steadily each year since 2021 with staff levels 9 p er cent higher this year. 

New figures obtained via Freedom of Information requests reveal a 96 per cent rise in sackings since 2021.

A total of 109 nurses and midwives were struck off between 2021/22, soaring to 191 the following year, Medical Negligence Assist said.

In the last year 2023/24, a total of 214 have been removed from the profession due to fitness to practise decisions, according to the NMC. Of those, 210 were nurses and four were midwives.

The majority of the reasons were related to errors or neglect involving patient care. However, other proven allegations included dishonesty, violent behaviour and sexual offences .

Former West Cumberland Hospital nurse, Roshin Mohammed Sherif was struck off earlier this year following charges covering wide-ranging areas of his practice while working as a band 5 nurse between 2021 and 2022.

Proven allegations included Mr Sherif drawing up medication without clinical justification, incompetence in medicines management, inability to recall information and failure to escalate patient situations duly.

The NMC report contains a colleague’s witness statement which reads: “Mr Sherif would struggle to use the Omnicell (electronic drugs cabinet) and would often have forced entries where he would pull at a cupboard door which was not flashing or would miss the flashing light indicating to him which medication was required."

Another incident detailed how Mr Sherif left a urine spill on the floor, unsafe for a high-risk falls patient.

Last year a nurse in Barrow avoided being struck off and was handed a nine-month condition of practice order.

Julie Fay, who worked at Furness General Hospital, was the subject of a Nurse and Midwifery Association tribunal after she failed to record that she had administered drugs to patients.

The nurse had worked in ward six of the hospital since 2017, but she was suspended in 2019.