'Violated and intimidated' Hospital worker struck off after kissing and touching female colleagues

He said he’d like to ‘rip off’ a colleague’s gown off. Now a former Wigan hospital worker has been struck off after kissing and touching colleagues.

Stephen Spencer was employed as an operating department practitioner (ODP) by Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) and was based at Wrightington Hospital following an internal transfer in February 2022.

But he cannot return to the operating theatre after a health and care professions tribunal looked into allegations made against him.

The panel heard Spencer, who did not attend the hearing, kissed a nurse - identified as Colleague A - on the cheek in September 2022, as she tried to speak to him about the patient on the trolley next to her.

When interviewed by the trust, he claimed it was “just a peck” to congratulate her on a new relationship.

But the nurse said she did not want Spencer to kiss her, did not give consent and was left feeling “shaken and uncomfortable”.

The panel heard about a separate incident on July 8, 2022, when Spencer put his hand on a senior ODP’s waist and physically moved her to the foot of the operating table.

Initially she thought he was “naturally tactile”, but said he later unfastened the top part of her theatre gown and stroked her neck.

The woman - identified as Colleague D - told him to stop and he slipped his arm across her waist, undid the gown and squeezed her waist, the panel heard.

She said she felt “very uncomfortable”, did not consent and felt the touching was “sexual because of the intimacy”.

The senior ODP said that when Spencer put his arm around her waist, he said he would like to “rip it off”, referring to the gown.

When interviewed by the trust, he said he had commented it would be “easy to rip it off, which is what we all do now as we do as this is much easier than untying them”.

However, the panel found his colleague’s account of what happened was “more reliable”.

They also found his acts towards this woman were sexually motivated.

The panel said: “Colleague A said the kiss made her feel uncomfortable, violated and intimidated. Colleague D said that she considered that the registrant’s behaviour was inappropriate and made her feel sufficiently uncomfortable to speak to a senior sister. She felt violated and intimidated.

“The panel accepted their evidence and found that the conduct had the effect of violating the dignity of these colleagues and creating an intimidating environment.”

Spencer was also found to have made an incorrect entry in a controlled drugs book on September 1, 2022, by recording that an audit had been completed at the end of the previous day, when it had not been done, and using a colleague’s signature.

He said when interviewed that the drugs there were correct and he was covering for the colleague, as he did not want them to get into trouble.

After the allegations were proven, the panel found Spencer’s actions amounted to misconduct and decided to impose a striking off order.

While they did consider alternative, lesser sanctions, they were concerned there was “a risk of repetition of both the dishonesty and the sexual misconduct”.

After the hearing, a WWL spokesman said: “We acknowledge the outcome of the Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service hearing concerning Stephen Spencer, a former operating department practitioner who is no longer employed by the trust.

“When concerns were raised, the trust carried out a thorough internal investigation and made a referral to the Health and Care Professions Council, fully supporting the regulatory process.

“We are committed to maintaining the highest standards of professional conduct and to providing a safe and respectful environment for patients, relatives and staff. As part of this commitment, the trust signed the NHS Sexual Safety in Healthcare Charter when it was launched in 2023.

“We encourage anyone with concerns about staff conduct to come forward, and we will always act swiftly and appropriately in response.”