FNA News
Fellow Nurses Africa
19 November 2025
Nurse Faces Deportation after five years in UK following criminal charges
A Ghanaian nurse who has lived and worked in Britain for nearly five years is facing jail and deportation after she was caught repeatedly giving a dementia patient powerful sedatives that had not been prescribed.
Rosemary (nother real name) was recruited directly from Ghana in 2020 by an NHS trust in Yorkshire to help address severe staffing shortages. She was later redeployed to a dementia ward.
Internal NHS investigation records detail a series of incidents that led to her dismissal and prosecution:
- She reportedly told a Ghanaian colleague that the dementia patients appeared to be “possessed by demons”.
- She regularly worked night shifts but did not rest adequately during the day and was observed sleeping on duty.
- In one incident she dragged an agitated patient along the floor, resulting in a final written warning.
- Between March and June 2025 she administered a strong sedative — not prescribed for the patient — to an elderly man with advanced dementia on several occasions. Two African colleagues quoted her as saying she did it so she could “have an easy night” and “want easy life”.
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A senior Ghanaian agency nurse warned her that the practice was illegal. A healthcare assistant from another African country later attempted to repeat it, believing it was authorised because “Nurse Rosemary did it the night before”. Blood tests later confirmed the presence of the unprescribed drug.
The trust suspended her, conducted a disciplinary hearing, and dismissed her for gross misconduct. West Yorkshire Police subsequently charged her with ill-treatment or wilful neglect of a person lacking capacity under the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015.
Because her Health and Care Worker visa was tied solely to her NHS employment, the Home Office revoked her leave to remain — and that of her husband and three school-age children — within weeks of the dismissal.
Rosemary, a mother of three and a practising Christian, is on conditional bail and is scheduled to stand trial at Leeds Crown Court in early 2026. If convicted, she faces imprisonment followed by near-certain deportation.
These alleged actions fall far below the professional standards we demand and are in no way representative of the vast majority of the international nursing workforce.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council has placed an interim suspension order on her registration, preventing practice anywhere in the UK pending the outcome of the case.
Fellow Nurses Africa urges all members working overseas to treat this painful case as a critical reminder: medication must never be administered outside a valid prescription, fatigue must be managed responsibly, and sponsored visa status can be lost — for the entire family — the moment employment ends.
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Fellow Nurses Africa is the independent voice of African nursing, we educate, inform and support nurses across Africa
Kehinde Oluwatosin is one of the many editors here at Fellow Nurses Africa and fellownurses.com.
He is a registered nurse with a Master of Science degree in healthcare leadership from the University of Hull, United Kingdom. Kehinde is passionate about advancing the nursing profession across Africa. As Co-Founder of Fellow Nurses Africa, he plays a key role in shaping editorial direction, ensuring our content educates, informs, and empowers nurses continent-wide.
With expertise in leadership, patient flow, and healthcare operations, Kehinde brings valuable insights to nursing news, career development, and policy discussions. He is committed to amplifying the voice of African nurses and driving positive change in the profession.
