Blackpool doctor who punched a dementia patient in the head is struck off medical register

Locum doctor, Xowi Mwimbi, 69, was found guilty of ill-treating the vulnerable patient at Blackpool Victoria Hospital in August 2021, during a trial last year. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison and this month the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) have decided he is impaired and will no longer be allowed to practice.

What happened?

The patient, who had dementia and limited motor functions, had a care plan in place for his complex needs which included an instruction not to get too close to him as it caused him distress. According to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), staff present also advised Dr Mwimbi to stand back, but he ignored them.

When Dr Mwimbi approached the patient, the patient made a racial comment, as he was known to do as part of his complex conditions, and told Dr Mwimbi to leave the room. Dr Mwimbi failed to listen, causing the patient to react by swinging his arm towards him making scarce contact. Dr Mwimbi in turn reacted by punching the patient to the left temple and pressing his head into the pillow.

Care staff who were present quickly intervened and reported the assault. A nurse who had cared for the patient for 11 months told the MPTS that the incident had affected her so much that she couldn’t sleep properly in the aftermath. Others described trembling and feeling physically sick.

In a police interview, Dr Mwimbi said the patient had hit him and racially abused him so he had acted in self-defence. He was 'surprised and shocked to hear the care staff present were telling stories about him and that it is all a figment of their imagination'. He also told the MPTS he had not been angry. The CPS presented evidence to the court that the incident would not have arisen if Dr Mwimbi had followed the care plan and that the patient scarcely made contact with the doctor due to his lack of mobility.

Following a trial at Preston Crown Court, the jury concluded that the doctor was not acting in self-defence and found him guilty of ill-treatment by a care worker.

What did the MPTS decide?

Dr Mwimbi told the MPTS that he did not accept his conviction because of the underlying facts behind it and therefore maintained his innocence. He further confirmed his view that the carers assisting with the patient had failed in their duty to provide an enabling environment for him to deliver care and confirmed his view that two of the carers had “concocted a highly imaginative story to justify their false accusations against me”.

Despite this, he has completed an anger management course, and that prior to his suspension from the medical register, he also completed a course entitled Conflict Management as well as various church courses to help him understand human nature. He submitted that just because he does not agree with the conviction does not mean that he lacks insight. A report states: “Dr Mwimbi submitted that he understands that such behaviour, if it had been based on facts or reality, would be reprehensible and unacceptable, he stated that the problem he has is that the events have not been relayed as they occurred.”

The MPTS Tribunal said that Dr Mwimbi had been found guilty of the offence beyond all reasonable doubt, and was of the view that the public do not expect doctors to commit such serious criminal offences. It concluded that patient safety, public trust and public confidence were seriously undermined by such conduct.

They also took the view that Dr Mwimbi’s level of insight “has remained static from the time of the incident, throughout his custodial sentence and has not developed in the lead up to or throughout this MPTS hearing.” Panel members were not assured that there was no risk of repetition in this case.

The Tribunal considered that fellow members of the profession would find Dr Mwimbi’s behaviour “reprehensible” and therefore determined that Dr Mwimbi’s fitness to practise is impaired by reason of his conviction.

He was struck off the register with immediate effect.

Blackpool Victoria

A spokesperson for Blackpool Teaching Hospitals said: "This was clearly an upsetting incident and I 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.

"I am 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."