Nurse so drunk at work she needed help booking a taxi

by Telegraph reporters 

A care home nurse has been suspended after a tribunal found she went to work drunk and needed help from her colleagues to book a taxi home.

Karen Jane Makinson, 59, was "extremely intoxicated" during a shift at Church House Nursing Home in Nantwich, Cheshire, in June 2024, putting residents at a "significant risk of harm", a Nursing and Midwifery Council panel found.

She was swaying as she walked through the 44-bed nursing home, which provides care for residents with dementia, according to the panel. She was dismissed 10 days later. Ms Makinson denied the allegations.

Giving evidence to the tribunal, her colleagues described how she laughed at things that were not funny and struggled to walk downstairs.

Robert Hammond, the care home manager, said he took her car keys from her after refusing to let her drive home, adding that a senior carer had to help her order a cab because she "simply could not co-ordinate to move her fingers on her phone to book a taxi home".

Karen Jane Makinson, 59, was drunk during a shift at Church House Nursing Home in Cheshire, putting residents at a 'significant risk of harm'

During a probationary interview, Ms Makinson admitted she had two glasses of wine at lunchtime some eight hours before her shift and said she may have appeared unsteady on her feet because she was answering a text on her phone while walking.

She also said she was unable to use her phone to book a taxi because she was unfamiliar with the recently downloaded app.

The panel found her account "implausible" and accepted the witnesses' evidence, according to a written judgment. Her actions were determined to have breached the code and amounted to misconduct.

'Very serious misconduct'

The panel said: "The panel was of the view that in attending work as the nurse in charge and the only nurse on shift, providing clinical care to vulnerable residents whilst under the influence of alcohol, was very serious misconduct and fell far below the standards expected of a registered nurse.

"The panel concluded from the evidence that Ms Makinson was extremely intoxicated and that her co-ordination, judgment and behaviour were all adversely affected as a consequence.

"It was of the view that someone who was intoxicated to this extent would be unlikely to recognise a deteriorating patient or respond appropriately if an emergency situation arose, placing residents at a significant risk of harm."

The panel concluded Ms Makinson's fitness to practise was impaired and ordered a 12-month suspension.

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Nurse so drunk at work she needed help booking a taxi