Care house nurse who slapped aged resident after they bit her finger is struck off

A senior care home nurse has been struck off after she slapped a vulnerable resident who bit her finger, before lying to cover up what she had done.

Julie McKinney lashed out at the resident while attempting to administer medication, a tribunal heard. 

But she later falsified records to conceal the assault, according to findings by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

The hearing was also told that foul-mouthed Ms McKinney swore at residents, calling one a ‘fat b*****d’ and another a ‘lazy f*****g bitch’.

The NMC has now permanently erased Ms McKinney’s name from the nursing register after finding her guilty of misconduct.

McKinney began working at the unnamed Edinburgh care home in 2020 and was promoted to senior staff nurse in 2023. 

However, she came under investigation by the Care Inspectorate in April 2024 following an anonymous complaint about alleged abuse of residents.

At a disciplinary hearing, McKinney denied slapping the resident or using offensive language towards those in her care – though she did admit falsifying the incident report and using inappropriate language during staff handovers.

She claimed her comments about slapping the resident were meant as a joke, insisting she ‘would never ever do this.’

But the tribunal rejected her explanation.

A senior care home nurse has been struck off after she slapped a vulnerable resident who bit her finger, before lying to cover up what she had done (stock image)

A care assistant gave evidence stating: ‘I half stopped and I heard Ms McKinney say words to the effect of ‘A resident bit my f***ing finger, I had to slap her to let go.’

In her written report of the incident, McKinney falsely claimed that two other staff members had opened the resident’s mouth to free her fingers, rather than her slapping the resident herself. 

The tribunal concluded that this was a deliberate lie.

Tribunal chair George Duff said: ‘The panel determined that it was not credible that Miss McKinney would be able to recall not slapping the resident, yet not recall how she removed her fingers from their mouth.

‘The panel further considered the question of Miss McKinney’s credibility. It noted that she has admitted to dishonestly completing an incident form.

‘The panel was concerned about why Miss McKinney would falsify the incident form, stating that two other members of staff were present when they were not.

‘The panel determined Miss McKinney would have no reason to falsify the records unless she was covering something up.

‘The panel was not satisfied of the veracity of Miss McKinney’s denial of slapping the resident. It found her account of the incident to be inconsistent and not credible, and noted she has admitted to dishonesty.

‘On the balance of probabilities, the panel determined it was more likely than not that Miss McKinney did slap the resident across the face.’

The tribunal also found McKinney guilty of repeatedly using obscene language toward both residents and staff.

As a result, the NMC ruled that her behaviour was ‘wholly incompatible’ with professional nursing standards, striking her off the register with immediate effect.