By Grâçia Ada Obi
A nurse was wrongly suspended for two years after a patient claimed she was pregnant with his child, a tribunal has found.
Jessica Thorpe was investigated after the man, named only as Patient X, said the pair were in an “inappropriate relationship.”
He was a patient on a secure facility for men with mental disorders who have come into contact with the criminal justice system.
A tribunal was told he claimed Thorpe was “pregnant with his child” – leading her to be suspended three days later.
A hearing eventually took place in July 2021 – more than a year after the allegations arose – by which time Patient X had passed away.
The panel heard how there may have been a “blurring of boundaries” due to the patient “responding well” to the nurse.
But the court heard the allegation of inappropriate behaviour was not upheld due to a lack of “conclusive evidence.”
Despite the ruling, Thorpe was told she would not be returning until a Police probe into Patient X’s death was completed.
She eventually was told she could continue her work with Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust in October 2022 but she resigned a month later.
Thorpe has now won her claim for unfair dismissal, breach of contract and unlawful deduction of wages after taking the trust to an employment tribunal.
Judge Simon Loy said there was an “enormous period” where Thorpe was suspended but said the “real issue” arose from the trust’s decision not to allow her back to work after the disciplinary hearing.
The court heard Thorpe began working for the trust in early 2020 but was suspended in April that same year when the claim was made.
During this period, the nurse launched a food influencer account on Instagram called “Slice of Jess” which amassed more than 50,000 followers.
She also began making YouTube videos and started earning money from her content.
Tax returns shown to the tribunal revealed her income from Google soared from £4,211 in 2021 to £19,222 in 2023.
The Trust tried to argue that Thorpe only resigned from her role as she wanted to “pursue her career as a social media influencer.”
But Thorpe said she only started posting content as a “hobby” during her suspension.
She also told the Trust when resigned that she was doing so because the trust failed to address any “gossip” about the “alleged relationship” from colleagues.
Judge Loy accepted her desire to pursue a career as a social media influencer was “influential” on her decision to leave.
He said he had “considerable sympathy” for their position as in “other contexts,” the breach could be considered to have been “remedied.”
But he added: “However, the tribunal must apply the applicable legal principles.
“If the duration of [Miss Thorpe’s] suspension gave her an opportunity to explore the potential for social media activities to generate income then so be it.”
Thorpe’s compensation will be decided at a future hearing.