Nurse struck off after taking money and house from 99-year-old care home resident

Mixed · 2The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has ruled that Rebecca Louise Burwood must never practise as a nurse again, after a tribunal found she exploited a vulnerable 99-year-old care home resident, referred to as Resident A. 1 2 Mixed · 2Burwood was deputy manager at Bryn Yr Haul Care Home in Mold, Flintshire, north-east Wales, and the conduct was found to run from 2017 to 2023. 1 2 Mixed · 2The woman was vulnerable after a fall and had no family to support her. In 2018 she signed her home, valued at £400,000, over to Burwood and moved into the care home. On 5 May 2018 Burwood and a friend were granted Lasting Power of Attorney, which Burwood did not disclose to the home. 1 2

Mixed · 2The tribunal heard that Burwood obtained about £370,000 in cash and spending over five years, including £160,000 withdrawn from cash machines, £20,000 towards a car and £9,000 towards a campervan, and money for home improvements, utility bills and council tax. Both outlets say there were allegations that some funds paid for cosmetic surgery. 1 2 Mixed · 2Burwood said the extension was so Resident A could live with them in another pandemic lockdown, but the tribunal noted it had been paid for before the first lockdown was announced. 1 2 Mixed · 2The Daily Mail headline puts the sum at £750,000. The Hindustan Times, citing The Independent, gives £770,000, made up of about £370,000 plus the £400,000 property. 1 2

Right · 1Burwood's defence was that Resident A asked for cash to be withdrawn and given to charities each week, in amounts of £250 to £500, and that Resident A did not want the government to have her money. The Mail reports that Burwood kept no records of withdrawals or donations. 1 Mixed · 2The case came to light when the woman's bank referred it to North Wales Police on 1 March 2023 and froze her account. Bank staff heard Burwood say she would not take Resident A out of the home if denied access to the money, and the attempt to unfreeze the account failed. 1 2 Right · 1On 28 April 2023 a nurse overheard Burwood tell Resident A "I will give you the money back" and "sign here", and reported it as possible financial abuse. Burwood was limited to supervised visits. Burwood said she was helping Resident A sign a condolence card. 1

Mixed · 2In a safeguarding visit on 10 May 2023 Resident A said she did not want to take action because she believed Burwood had learned from past mistakes and valued the friendship, and police closed their investigation. Flintshire County Council referred the matter to the NMC on 9 June 2023. 1 2 Mixed · 2The NMC panel found a "sustained, calculated course of conduct" in which Burwood used manipulation and coercion and exploited Resident A's reliance on her for social contact. It called this serious misconduct and judged a striking-off order proportionate. Burwood said she saw Resident A as her "nana", which she offered as the reason she crossed professional boundaries. 1 2 Right · 1Resident A has since died. The tribunal found the withdrawals left enough money for only 23 months of care before the council would have had to step in. The Daily Mail said it had contacted Burwood for comment. 1