AN ABUSIVE care home nurse who ignored the pleas of a 93-year-old man she found collapsed with a broken shoulder bone has been struck off.

Patricia Anne Causton, who had worked as a nurse since 1983, admitted a catalogue of misconduct over ten months at the Mulberry Court Nursing Home, in Shipton Road.

A professional conduct committee heard that four patients, aged between 71 and 93, suffered verbal and physical abuse and inadequate care at her hands.

In one case the night shift nurse refused to examine a "frail and confused" 93-year-old man found collapsed in his bathroom in the early hours.

When a day shift nurse discovered the man in bed the next morning writhing in agony, she called an ambulance. He was found to have a fractured scapula - shoulder blade.

Cathy Gritzner, of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, said Ms Causton "disregarded" the welfare of vulnerable and elderly patients over a sustained period.

Striking her off the nursing register after a three-hour hearing at the Royal York Hotel, she said: "We have no doubt that she has failed to safeguard and protect the interests of individual patients."

Denise Rouse, who worked as matron at the home at that time, told the committee that Ms Causton was given a final written warning by a previous employer for not following company policy.

The committee heard that Ms Causton worked at the Clifton nursing home between November 1999 and August 2000.

During this time she admitted:

Shouting threats and abuse at the 93-year-old man on several occasions as he wandered in corridors at night. She swore at him and called him a "silly man"

Giving an injection to an 82-year-old with prostrate cancer so quickly that the drug pooled under his skin, leaving a two-inch blister. Other staff were "shocked"

Asking unqualified care assistants to do the night-time drugs round at the home because she was "very ill"

Failing to record giving a poorly and agitated 92-year-old man drugs and later giving him an unknown tablet.

Mrs Gritzner said: "The misconduct in this case is of a very serious nature showing wholesale disregard of the welfare of vulnerable, frail and elderly patients.

"It also shows unacceptable and poor levels of clinical process and a lack of responsibility and respect of administration of drugs and disregard of policies and procedures.

"The misconduct occurred over a sustained period of time and these were not isolated incidents."

Mulberry Court Nursing Home is a 63-room private business which opened in 1999. It is currently run by Barchester Healthcare which took over the home in 2001, after Ms Causton was suspended.

A spokesperson said: "Barchester Healthcare would like to stress that the nurse who was struck off by the Nursing Midwifery Council was not working for Barchester Healthcare at the time of the alleged incidents.

"Barchester Healthcare acquired Mulberry Court Care Home in 2001. The nurse in question was suspended in 2000 pending an investigation.

"Barchester Healthcare is the third-largest provider of residential and nursing home care in the UK. It leads the way in the provision of first-class care homes with unrivalled facilities."

Updated: 10:27 Thursday, May 26, 2005