Care home nurse forced pills into residents' mouths

A nurse has been struck off after she was found to have pushed medication into the mouths of vulnerable and elderly care home residents against their will.

Davina Owen was sacked from her role at Norway Lodge Nursing Home in Birkenhead, Wirral, in November 2023 after one man being cared for there raised the alarm with another staff member.

Owen was also found to have forced tablets into the mouths of two other residents and pressured one man to eat to increase his blood sugar levels - despite it not being medically necessary.

Her case was referred to the Nursing and Midwifery Council, which charged her with misconduct, leading to an independent panel removing her right to practise.

The panel heard the first man, referred to as Resident A, told a health care assistant Owen had pushed a tablet into his mouth without giving him water.

He said he had been lying on his back and felt he was going to choke.

A short time later a diabetic man, Resident C, told the manager Owen had been "forcing him to eat" to keep his blood sugar levels up even when he did not wish to.

However, the panel heard the man was very aware of his condition and regularly tested his blood sugar levels.

He said Owen would "load me up with biscuits and cakes" until his levels were as "high as she wants it".

In a statement, he said: "Even when I feel OK and my levels are OK, she forces me in a way."

As a result of those reports the manager arranged for all residents with mental capacity to be spoken to about how Owen treated them.

Other accusations followed including from a man referred to as Resident E, who has since died.

He told staff Owen would "regularly push medication into his mouth".

In a statement given before he died, Resident E wrote: "I said I'd bite her fingers if she carried on shoving tablets down my mouth."

Owen submitted statements to the hearing denying the charges but did not attend.

In its ruling, the panel said it had: "Considered that Mrs Owen's conduct had impacted multiple residents of varying ages and vulnerabilities across residential and nursing care settings on different occasions.

"It bore in mind that it had found a pattern of behaviour concerning Mrs Owen's approach to medication administration, which calls into question whether she can practise kindly, safely and professionally."

It deciding on sanction, it described Owen's behaviour as evidence of "harmful deep-seated attitudinal problems" and said she posed a "significant risk" of repeating it.

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