"If you fight a black woman I will beat you down to the ground" nurse allegedly told suicidal patient

Deborah Yohanna-Washington allegedly hurled wound dressings and a metal jug at the patient

A nurse slapped a suicidal patient across the face and said: "If you fight a black woman I will beat you down to the ground," a hearing was told. 

Deborah Yohanna-Washington allegedly hurled wound dressings and a metal jug at the patient, hitting her on the back, a panel at the Nursing and Midwifery council was told.

Colleague Betty Cunningham said she saw Yohanna-Washington being abusive towards the woman, referred to as patient A, on January 31, 2007 when they were on duty at the Laffan Ward at St Pancras Hospital in north London.

She told the central London hearing she was keeping the patient under close observation, after she tried to harm herself with a bandage that had been applied to her arm.

Miss Cunningham said her colleague returned with dressings for the patient's wounds, then shouted:

"As you made the mess you can clean it up yourself", throwing them into her lap.

She said Yohanna-Washington made no attempt to try actually dress the wound.

"Patient A actually threw the jug towards the doorway and the jug hit Deborah below the chest area and fell on the floor spilling the contents and I remember Deborah bending down to pick it up and throw at Patient A,' said Miss Cunningham.

She said her colleague grabbed the patient's arm and slapped her across the face, saying "if you want to fight a black woman, I will beat you to the ground".

Miss Cunningham said she was standing in the doorway and that she clearly heard what was said.
Asked how the patient had reacted to this Miss Cunningham said: 'She burst into tears.

"She was shocked and she burst into tears, and she was crying," she added.
Yohanna-Washington, who is attending the hearing, denies all allegations against her.

If her fitness to practise is found to be impaired by reason of misconduct she could be struck off.
The hearing continues.