Nurse banned from practicing for sexually abusing 71-year-old disabled woman

A nurse convicted last year of a sexual offense has been handed a full professional ban by the disciplinary court in Den Bosch. The healthcare worker sexually abused a severely disabled 71-year-old woman. Even though the abuse took place outside of work, the court deemed the case serious enough to warrant a complete ban from practicing in healthcare.

The disciplinary court deemed the risk of reoffending high, noting that the nurse had not clarified the source of his sexual behavior. He claimed to have acted out of boredom. Since February, he has been serving a three-year prison sentence. The location where the nurse worked has not been made public.

In 2022, the Health and Youth Care Inspectorate was notified by the police about the nurse. He was accused of giving the victim two erotic massages alongside the victim’s brother, with the second session involving sexual penetration.

The disciplinary court ruled that, even though the incidents took place privately, the nurse violated the professional code. “In their professional role, the nurse was responsible for the care of (vulnerable) patients. In such a position of dependence, patients must be able to trust that the nurse acts with integrity,” the decision reads.

The decision was made by the Regional Disciplinary Court for Healthcare in Den Bosch, which is authorized to assess the conduct of healthcare professionals listed in the BIG register. A full professional ban is the harshest sanction the court can impose, meaning the nurse will be permanently struck from the BIG register and barred from practicing in any BIG-registered profession in the future.