A NURSE who lied to police about the treatment of a patient who died while in her care has been warned she could be jailed.
Petua Nugent made a statement saying CPR had been conducted on the man when in fact it had not been.
The 52-year-old, who was working at Chalkdown House, in Dorcan, at the time of the incident now accepts she misled investigators.
Nugent, of Southall, West London, pleaded guilty to a charge of perverting the course of justice when she appeared before a judge at Swindon Crown Court.
She admitted that on Tuesday October 13, 2015, she made a false statement to police investigating the death of Daniel Beswick.
Adjourning the case to a date to be fixed Judge Robert Pawson said “Ms Nugent, you have pleaded guilty to a serious offence.
“The fact that I am renewing your bail should not be taken by you as any indication of what the sentence should be.”
The court heard that two other former members of staff at the unit, which closed during the summer, are also being investigated.
Mr Beswick was in the unit, which provided help for people with brain injuries and mental health needs, when he died two years ago.
The court heard that by the time a 999 call was made no CPR had been carried out but Nugent, and it is claimed two others, told police that it had.
A final decision has yet to be made as to whether anyone else will face charges in relation to the matter, the court heard.
Chalkdown House, which was Swindon’s only brain injury rehabilitation centre, was formally opened in 2013 by Princess Anne.
Located in Edison Park it was a multi-million pound state-of-the-art hospital catering for up to 20 people needing specialist brain injury and mental health treatment.
But in its four years of operation the unit, run by the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust which is part of The Disabilities Trust, was never at full capacity.
Dwindling admission numbers, struggles to recruit staff and financial losses left the trust with no choice but to close the centre at the end of August amid fears of its long-term sustainability.
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