The sexual health nurse in Wakefield did not disclose the STI results

A sexual health nurse who failed to communicate positive test results for sexually transmitted infections to patients and their partners should be struck off, a professional hearing has said.

David Allen made incorrect entries and omitted information when updating patient records, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) heard.

Mr Allen, who worked at Wakefield Integrated Sexual Health Services, also posted abusive and inappropriate messages about colleagues online.

The NMC found that her actions could have led to a real risk of harm to patients and were “a gross departure from the standards expected of a nurse”.

The NMC panel, which met in early July, heard the discrepancies dating back to 2018 and involving 18 cases.

When a person has tested positive for a sexually transmitted disease, the guidelines say that any current or past sexual partners should be informed, which is called partner notification.

The NMC panel found that on 18 occasions Mr Allen failed to complete the partner notification and falsely indicated that he had done so.

Witness statements submitted suggested Mr Allen did this to improve key performance indicators (KPIs), which measure how NHS screening programs are working.

Twice, he also failed to notify patients who tested positive for gonorrhea.

In October 2018, Mr Allen breached information governance when he sent a text message to a patient that contained sensitive data.

The NMC said Mr Allen’s conduct indicated a pattern of repeated and sustained behaviour, as opposed to isolated mistakes or errors.

The panel was told Mr Allen also shared abusive and inappropriate comments about his colleagues on social media, referring to one of them as a “homophobic man-hater” and calling the other a “mean cow” .

In their conclusion, the panel said: “Mr Allen knew his actions were capable of creating a false and misleading impression that the mandatory partner notification process had been completed when it had not.

“The panel concluded that it was most likely that Mr Allen knowingly recorded partner notices when he failed to do so, that this was dishonest and that his reasons for doing so were to improve KPIs associated”.

All but one of the 23 charges brought against Mr. Allen were proven.

He has been suspended from the register pending a 28-day appeal period, after which a final delisting order will come into effect.

In September 2021, Mr Allen, who resigned from his role in February 2019, was volunteering in a non-health setting, the NMC said.

A spokesman for Spectrum Community Health CIC, which runs Wakefield Integrated Sexual Health Services, said it had launched an investigation and referred the case to the NMC.

“The safety and well-being of our service users is our highest priority. We take incidents of misconduct very seriously and strive to ensure a safe and reliable environment for everyone who relies on our services,” the spokesperson added.