Nurse who planned to accuse colleague of sexual assault struck off

A scheming nurse who planned to falsely accuse a male colleague of sexually assaulting her as ‘revenge’ for reporting her abuse of care home residents has been struck off.

Ruxandra Sarbut, 36, confided in another member of staff that she would claim the whistleblower had lifted her up and groped her backside.

When the employee challenged her and said she shouldn’t invent the allegation, she responded dismissively: ‘Duh, I can.’

Sarbut’s verbal abuse of vulnerable residents included calling one a ‘f****** stupid man’. She also discussed doping patients with a powerful sedative and was abusive towards staff.

Details emerged at a hearing by a Nursing and Midwifery Conduct panel, who concluded Sarbut had brought the profession into disrepute and issued a striking-off order.

In its judgement, the panel said: ‘You have in the past acted to put patients at a risk of harm, given that you have shouted and verbally abused vulnerable elderly residents, and [shown] that you are liable to do this in the future, given that there is limited evidence of remediation.

‘[The panel] is also of the view that you have brought the profession into disrepute…

‘You have also acted dishonesty and the panel is of the view that it is very serious to dishonestly accuse someone of sexual assault.’

Sarbut was employed at Buckingham Lodge nursing home in Carbrooke, Norfolk, which provides nursing, residential and dementia care. Facilities at the 70-bedroom site include a sun lounge, library, home cinema and landscaped garden.

The misconduct occurred between November 2021 and January last year and included the plot against her colleague, following her suspicons he had shopped her to bosses.

In a conversation with her colleague, she said: ‘If I find out it’s them, I will tell management they touched my bum.’

The individual, who described the allegation as ‘revenge’, told the panel: ‘I reiterated that she should not make up a false allegation and she said “Duh, I can”.’

Sarbut was said to be ‘full or rage against staff and residents’, with examples including calling one resident a ‘f****** stupid man’ and another an ‘idiot’, as well as commenting that people were ‘only at the home to die’.

She told another patient: ‘Why are you following me? Do you want to sit on my f****** head?’

Colleagues were subjected to verbal abuse one had an electronic device ‘snatched’ from her hands because Sarbut was ‘frustrated with how they were struggling to use it’.

One colleague reported that the shamed nurse discussed misusing the sedative Lorazepam, which she referred to as ‘Pam’, on residents.

Sarbut threatened to ‘Pam them up’ or would say ‘Pam is our best friend’.

Allegations that she had physically abused residents by pushing, grabbing and shaking them were not proven by the panel.

But Sarbut’s conduct was found to have amounted to ‘premeditated dishonesty and [she] sought to victimise a perceived whistleblower’.

The panel added: ‘Patients were put at risk and were caused emotional harm as a result of your misconduct.

‘Your misconduct had breached the fundamental tenets of the nursing profession and therefore brought its reputation into disrepute.

‘The panel was satisfied that whilst some of the misconduct in this case is capable of being addressed, the issues of dishonesty and lack of integrity are more difficult to remediate.’

Sarbut, who arrived in the UK from Romania in 2015, was given an interim suspension order and will be struck off in 18 months unless she appeals.

After losing her job at the care home when the allegations came to light, she was banned from working with vulnerable adults and children by the Disclosure and Barring Service, the hearing was told. She has since been working night shifts in the ‘agriculture’ industry.

Her Facebook page is filled with slogans including ‘I’m a nurse. I’m here to save your ass, not kiss it’ and ‘I was born sweet, f*** knows what happened’.

Miss Sarbut claimed she was the victim of a 'conspiracy' and that staff had been allowed to 'write their statements together, in the same room'.

The Mail has not been able to check this claim.

'From my point of view, it [the investigation] was unfair,' she said.

'Fortunately, I have a partner who has backed me up. I have been through some rough moments in my life because of this. I was suicidal at one point.'

Miss Sarbut, who doesn't have children, moved into the agricultural sector after losing her job and is now a factory worker.

A spokesman for care home owner Kingsley Healthcare said: ‘We are satisfied that the right outcome has been reached, thanks to our robust investigation and the reporting of its conclusions to the NMC.’