A British healthcare worker is under fire for using a dead patient's bank card to buy crisps, sweets and a fizzy drink from the hospital's vending machine - 17 minutes after the elderly woman succumbed to COVID-19.
National Health Service (NHS) staffer Ayesha Basharat - a 23-year-old healthcare assistant working on a COVID-19 ward - used the 83-year-old patient's bank card mere minutes after she died from the virus at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital on January 24, says the West Midlands Police Department.
Basharat used contactless payment to purchase six £1 (NZ$1.98) products from the hospital's vending machine and made another £1 purchase that evening.
When she returned to the hospital for her shift four days later, Basharat attempted to use the card again - but by that time, the card had been cancelled, police said.
Basharat initially argued she had found the card on the floor and got "muddled up" when paying for her snacks. However, the 23-year-old later admitted to theft and fraud by false representation at Birmingham Crown Court on Wednesday, June 9.
She was sentenced to two concurrent five-month jail terms, both suspended for 18 months.
Basharat reportedly refused to apologise to the pensioner's family when they confronted her at her home in Birmingham.
The 23-year-old has also declined to answer questions about her behaviour.
The University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Heartlands Hospital, confirmed Basharat has been suspended from her role.
An internal investigation has also been launched.
"Ayesha Basharat was immediately suspended when this incident came to light and all steps were taken to support the patient's family," a spokesman for the trust said in a statement issued to local media.
The spokesperson said the trust has supported the police with their investigation and will now proceed with internal HR processes.
"We would like to offer our sympathies to the patient's family and sincerely apologise for their experience; this incident is disgraceful and clearly fell short of the high standards of integrity that we all expect of NHS employees."
West Midlands Police investigating officer DC Andrew Snowdon said Basharat's behaviour was "an abhorrent breach of trust" and "distressing for the victim's family".
"They were having to come to terms with the death of a loved one from COVID when they found the bank card missing - and then of course, the realisation that the card was taken by someone who should have been caring for her," Snowdon said.
“I wish the family all the best for the future and with this conviction hope they can move on from this upsetting episode."
