Nurse ordered to repay NHS after working agency shifts while on sick leave

A nurse who claimed to be unfit to work due to ill health while also working agency shifts has been suspended from the profession.

Claire Dawson was convicted of fraud at Falkirk Sheriff Court in February 2024 following an investigation by NHS Scotland Counter Fraud Services.

An allegation was first received about Dawson, who was employed within A&E at Forth Valley Royal Hospital, in August 2022, including allegations that she had been working with the Scottish Nursing Guild while on Covid special leave and sick leave.

It was found that the nurse had been paid over £6,600 by the agency after going off sick due to illness related to Covid and complications with diabetes in March 2022.

She continued to receive full pay and later half pay from her employer while being fit to work and working in a similar employment elsewhere.

An investigation by NHS fraud specialists identified that Dawson defrauded the health board of over £8,000 during the period of her absence, and the matter was reported to the Crown Office.

Dawson pled guilty and was sentenced to 200 hours of unpaid work and ordered to repay NHS Forth Valley £2,400 in March 2024.

An investigation by the Nursing and Midwifery Council also found that Dawson stated in a job application dated August 2023 that she was not subject to any fitness to practise proceedings or NHS Counter Fraud investigations.

In their report, the council found that Dawson’s actions had “breached fundamental tenets of nursing practice and that her misconduct is liable to bring the nursing profession into disrepute”.

It was concluded that Dawson’s fitness to practise is currently impaired.

A suspension was issued for a period of 12 months.