An Aberdeen support worker has been issued a warning after leaving a fallen resident alone on the floor while he took a nap.
Emmanuel Onu had been asked to stay with the resident in the corridor of Ruthrieston House after she fell on or around June 12, 2022.
However, the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) has reported Mr Onu, who was employed by VSA at the time, instead went to a nearby lounge area and fell asleep.
The watchdog determined his fitness to practise was “impaired” by his actions and, this week, issued a warning to stay on his registration for the next 12 months.
Mr Onu’s actions put the resident, referred to as AA in the report, at risk of “emotional and physical” harm, the investigation has concluded.
Warning issued to Aberdeen support worker
The woman is described as “vulnerable” in the report, but paramedics confirmed she did not suffer any injuries as a result of the fall.
The report states: “You left a resident alone while she was lying on a corridor floor.
“The resident had fallen and another member of staff had left to call the NHS24 for advice.
“You then went into the nearby lounge and fell asleep, again this was while the resident was lying alone on the corridor floor outside of the lounge.
“Your actions placed AA at a risk of harm.
“It does not appear that your intention was to place AA at a risk of harm.
“However, you exercised poor judgement in leaving AA as you did not recognise the risk of harm.”
It goes on to say the support worker said he had been “close” to the woman and had “dozed off” after two sleepless nights.
An ‘isolated’ incident
The watchdog recognised Mr Onu’s behaviour was “isolated” and he showed “some insight, regret and apology” in the aftermath.
Mr Onu had been in the role for around four months when the incident took place and moved on to another role in the sector without any issues for the following 11 months.
VSA, who operate Ruthrieston House, confirmed he has not worked for them since June 2022.
Sue Freeth, chief executive of VSA, said: “VSA can confirm that following the misconduct of this Support Worker, the incident was reported to the SSSC as per our duty of care for the people we support.
“We then followed our own policy and procedures and can confirm that Mr Onu has not worked for VSA since June 2022.”