A Nigerian-born nurse, Chimzuruoke Okembunachi, has had her nursing licence revoked in Australia after a tribunal found she repeatedly slept during night shifts at an aged care facility, placing elderly patients at risk.
According to a report by the Daily Mail on Friday, the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal ruled on January 20 that Ms Okembunachi’s actions in March 2024 amounted to professional misconduct, resulting in the cancellation of her nursing registration.
Ms Okembunachi, 25, began working at Hardi Aged Care in Guildford, western Sydney, in February 2024. Within a month, she was suspended and later resigned.
Tribunal proceedings revealed that between March 13 and 27, she was the only registered nurse on night shifts overseeing three or four assistants-in-nursing (AINs) and around 100 residents.
On six separate nights, she reportedly failed to carry out her duties because she slept, and on three occasions, patients missed prescribed doses of morphine. Evidence also showed that during the March 21–22 shift, an AIN turned on the nurses’ station light to wake her, but she switched it off a minute later and returned to sleep.
On March 15, she instructed an AIN to give a patient Panadol, despite the assistant not being authorised to administer medication, saying, “It’s okay, sister, just give it to him.”
Two nurses reported her conduct on March 27. The following day, she received a suspension email and an invitation to a meeting but resigned 20 minutes later without attending.
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Born in Nigeria, Ms Okembunachi moved to Australia in 2018. She earned a Bachelor of Nursing Science in 2021 and was also studying medicine at Western Sydney University while working at Hardi Aged Care.
She told the tribunal, “These events caused me significant stress… In hindsight, I should not applied for, or accepted the position at Hardi. Working night shifts during the week was putting patients’ safety at risk.”
She added, “When I slept on night shift, I failed in supervising those staff members and the residents.”
The tribunal acknowledged her “remorseful and contrite” attitude but deemed deregistration necessary, noting her actions “had the potential to endanger the lives of patients under her care.”
Ms Okembunachi cannot apply for a review for at least nine months. While she has not returned to nursing, she continues her medical studies, supported by her father and a Centrelink Student Allowance.