Current location:entertainment >>
Devout Christian doctor, 68, who punched dementia
entertainment2People have gathered around
IntroductionAn 'arrogant' doctor who punched a vulnerable patient for making a racist comment and spitting at hi ...
An 'arrogant' doctor who punched a vulnerable patient for making a racist comment and spitting at him has become the fifth health professional from a single hospital to be jailed in the past year.
Devout Christian Dr Xowi Mwimbi, 68, was last week given a 12-month sentence after ignoring warnings that the man – who had a degenerative brain condition - might lash out and losing his temper.
Staff at Blackpool Victoria Hospital had urged the locum consultant physician to keep his distance as the patient could get severely distressed if anyone got to close to him.
But Mwimbi - a church elder and trustee of a charity which tackles poverty in Africa – 'shamefully' ignored their pleas and attacked the unnamed man after being insulted.
A trial heard the patient instinctively swung his arm towards Mwimbi but barely made any contact.
The doctor then reacted by punching the patient to the left temple and pressing his head into the pillow.
Devout Christian Dr Xowi Mwimbi, 68, (pictured) punched a vulnerable patient for making a racist comment
Dr Mwimbi is a church elder at the Altrincham Seventh-day Adventist Church, in Greater Manchester and trustee of a charity which tackles poverty in Africa
Staff at Blackpool Victoria Hospital (pictured) had urged the locum consultant physician to keep his distance as the patient could get severely distressed if anyone got to close to him
Staggeringly, Mwimbi is the third health professional to be jailed for mistreating patients at the Lancashire hospital in the past 12 months.
Last December a nurse and a healthcare worker at Blackpool Victoria Hospital's stroke unit were jailed for ill-treatment after a court heard patients were sedated for an 'easy shift' and their own 'amusement'.
A fourth member of staff, 'predatory' healthcare assistant Hernando Puno, 52, was jailed for nine months last May for sexually assaulting female colleagues.
A fifth was locked up for stealing medication.
In a statement read to his sentencing hearing last week, the patient's mother, a nurse herself, added: 'I have never seen anyone strike a patient before.
'What Dr Mwimbi did was both unjustified and shameful.'
Mwimbi also faces an investigation by the General Medical Council which could lead to him being struck off.
'It is clear you failed in your first duty of car to a patient which is to do no harm,' Judge Heather Lloyd told him at Preston Crown Court.
'This patient had very complex needs and you ignored warnings over how he should be approached when dealing with him.
'Even a student nurse was aware of the warnings and this would not have happened if this patient had been approached with care.
Hernando Puno, 52, (pictured) was jailed for nine months last May for sexually assaulting female colleagues
Dr Mwimbi was convicted of ill treatment by a care worker following a trial after jurors rejected his self defence plea
In a police interview Dr Mwimbi from Wythenshawe, Manchester said the patient had hit him and racially abused him so he had acted in 'self-defence'
Pictured: The outside of Blackpool Victoria Hospital where Dr Mwimbi worked
'After all your years of practice, you thought you knew better.'
Judge Lloyd said the patient had 'lashed out and spat at you in a terrible way'.
'No doubt you were surprised and appalled, but the fact is that as he was being restrained by carers you lost your temper and punched him in the temple and held him is a tight grip,' she added.
Judge Lloyd said Mwimbi had falsely accused the man's carers of 'putting their heads together and lying about what happened'.
'You have demonstrated a degree of arrogance and shown no remorse by continuing to deny any wrongdoing.'
Read More
Devout Christian doctor, 68, is convicted of punching a dementia patient in the head and pushing his face into a pillow after he was racially abused during medical consultation
The victim has 'regressed' since the incident making it harder for helpers to care for him, the court heard.
In her statement, the unnamed patient's mother said he 'becomes extremely agitated if he fear someone is going to hurt him again'.
Mwimbi, of Wythenshawe, Manchester, qualified as a doctor in Zambia in 1986.
He was convicted of ill-treatment by a care worker earlier this year after a jury rejected his claim to have been acting in self-defence.
Paul Humphries, defending, asked the judge to take into account that there had been a level of provocation by the patient.
'It would be upsetting for anyone who is racially abused and spat at - he was left covered in spittle,' he said.
'I do not think any good would be served by him going to jail.'
Blackpool Victoria Hospital has already been at the centre of a four-year police investigation into allegations of a 'culture of abuse' by staff towards patients on the stroke unit.
Last December senior nurse Catherine Hudson, 54, and junior colleague, Charlotte Wilmot, 48, were jailed for seven years and two months and three years respectively for conspiring to drug and ill-treat defenceless patients.
Marek Grabianowski, himself a senior nurse who at one stage ran the hospital's A&E department, was jailed for 14 months after he admitted conspiracy to steal drugs and perverting the course of justice.
Detectives are still investigating the suspicious death of Valerie Kneale, 75, who bled to death on the ward in November 2018 after suffering what officers believe was a sex attack.
A £20,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the conviction of the killer, but no-one has been brought to justice.
Detectives are still investigating the suspicious death of Valerie Kneale (pictured), 75, who bled to death on the ward in November 2018
Mwimbi, of Wythenshawe, Manchester, qualified as a doctor in Zambia in 1986
Pictured: Catherine Hudson, 54, was jailed for seven years and two months at Preston Crown Court for ill-treating patients
Pictured: Charlotte Wilmot, 48, was also jailed for conspiring to drug and ill-treat defenceless patients
Catherine Hudson (left), 54, and Charlotte Wilmot (right), 48, pictured leaving Preston Crown Court, where they were convicted
Pictured are Hudson (right) and Wilmot (left) exchanged messages joking about sedating their patients
Following the trial, Sazeeda Ismail, Senior Crown Prosecutor for North West England, said: 'Dr Xowi Mwimbi demonstrated a gross breach of his duty of care, when in anger he used excessive force against an extremely vulnerable man.
'His actions traumatised those who witnessed the incident. I would like to thank those witnesses for their quick action in intervening and reporting what they had seen.
'It is thanks to them that we have been able to bring Dr Mwimbi to justice for his despicable actions.'
Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the hospital, said: 'This was clearly an upsetting incident and we would like to apologise for the distress caused to the patient and their family, as well as colleagues who witnessed it, intervened and immediately reported it to the police.
'This doctor was covering a shift as a locum and not a permanent member of the team who place paramount importance on providing a caring, safe and respectful environment.
'We are very grateful the matter has been dealt with so quickly by all involved and reassure local people this is not the high standard of treatment they can expect from the Trust.'
Tags:
Reprint:Friends are welcome to share on the Internet, but please indicate the source of the article when reprinting it.“Earthly Echo news portal”。http://gibraltar.prpsystems.net/article-45e799197.html
Related articles
Supreme Court rejects an appeal from a Canadian man once held at Guantanamo
entertainmentWASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by a Canadian-born former Guantanam ...
Read moreKate and Charles' heart
entertainmentKing Charles was left 'feeling very emotional' after having a private lunch with the Princess of Wal ...
Read moreDanish queens don't get to be crowned. But when Margrethe steps down this weekend, her daughter
entertainmentIt's ten thousand miles from Sydney to the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen.Crown Princess Mary of ...
Read more
Popular articles
- The fightback begins: Boss of London's Queen Mary University tells pro
- Hong Kong gov't contacts police over satirical fake press release congratulating porn star
- Queen Camilla could stand in for King Charles at the 80th anniversary of D
- Snap! How toned Pippa Middleton matches her bikinis with her designer wardrobe
- Storms damage homes in Oklahoma and Kansas. But in Houston, most power is restored
- It's discreet, stylish and very, very British
Latest articles
Kate Hudson hits the stage to debut songs from her new album Glorious at star
Ministry of Health proposes 134 job losses
Doctor reveals shocking theory behind why you suddenly need to use the toilet during shopping trips
What would open warfare between Israel and Iran look like? How tit
I was 'brokefished' by my friend for £400
Meghan Markle purchased pair of £1990 diamond earrings from Dragons' Den hopefuls
LINKS
- China Focus: China Issues No. 1 Central Document for 2023, Highlights Rural Vitalization Tasks
- Multiple safety issues haunt Boeing
- Beijing slams Washington for spreading false info
- China's first new energy vehicle battery base in Northeast was established in Changchun
- Xi Encourages Chinese Medical Personnel in Africa to Deliver Benefits to Locals
- Children in Yuncheng celebrated the festive spirit of the New Year in their new clothes and hats
- New faces set to lead China
- COP28 sets eyes on AI to fight climate change
- US, Arab states at odds on truce
- Xi Jinping's Economic Thought Steers China Toward Modernity