A “cruel” paramedic who taunted a woman suffering a life-threatening medical emergency with racially motivated comments has been struck off the register.
Rachel Lemonofides, a former paramedic with North West Ambulance Service, which serves Salford, told a patient she was being “dramatic” and repeatedly asked her roommate if she believed in “black magic” as the seriously unwell woman lay in bed in excruciating pain.
The Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service hearing was told how Ms Lemonofides spent nearly two hours at the address with a colleague during which she accused the patient of lying about her illness before eventually taking her to hospital.
It was there that staff informed the patient she had a blood clot on the brain that caused a stroke and her aorta had burst.
She was rushed to Wythenshawe Hospital for emergency surgery and spent time in intensive care.
Ms Lemonofides’ colleague recalled how she said that if the incident had been filmed, “you would watch it back and laugh at it.”
The HCPTS panel also heard how Ms Lemonofides shouted at the unwell woman to “act your age” and threatened to tell her employer she was being disruptive.
“Stop being a baby, many people need this ambulance, we will tell your employer that you are being funny,” she said to the patient.
The panel agreed that the paramedic acted in an “abhorrent way,” showing a lack of dignity and respect for the patient who was subjected to “unacceptable” treatment over a drawn-out period.
It began when the patient was at her home address preparing to go to work. After feeling a sharp pain in her chest which became unbearable, she directed one of her housemates – referred to as Witness 4 and Witness 6 – to call an ambulance.
Ms Lemonofides arrived at the property at 8.21 am, responding to a 999 call explaining the patient was experiencing pain in their throat, chest and back as well as a high temperature.
When the paramedics entered the house, the patient told Ms Lemonofides’ colleague her lower back was hurting and her right leg felt uncomfortable or numb.
Instead of considering these symptoms and the patient’s “debilitated state and loud groans” as cause for concern, she decided the patient did not require urgent treatment.
She then made comments about the patient acting “possessed” and asked Witness 6 if she practised “black magic.”
All four witnesses were left shocked by these comments, with the patient, Witness 4 and Witness 6 believing they were discriminatory based on the patient’s race and ethnicity.
A colleague complained about her behaviour on 13 January 2024, followed by a written complaint from a relative of Patient A two days later.
She was subsequently restricted from working on 5 March 2024 and was dismissed by NWAS on 11 July 2024 following an investigation into her conduct.
However, she failed to notify the HCPC of her dismissal as soon as possible, despite being required to do so.
The panel concluded she showed hostility and a discriminatory attitude towards the patient’s racial group, agreeing she acted in a grossly unprofessional manner.
Mr Simon Maughan, who was representing the Health and Care Professions Council, said that Ms Lemonofides had allowed her personal biases to affect the care she gave to the patient.
He said the paramedic’s behaviour after arriving at the address exposed the patient to an “obvious risk of significant physical harm, in addition to mental harm.”
Mr Maughan added that Ms Lemonofides’ behaviour would make people “unlikely to be able to place trust and confidence” in paramedics to carry out their role.
The panel said that Ms Lemonofides had failed to take accountability for her role in the incident.
They agreed that, while the incident began as a single visit to the patient’s address, it could not be viewed as a single lapse because it continued for nearly two hours, was followed by an inappropriate remark to a colleague that appeared to minimise the incident and was compounded by her failure to report restrictions on her practice and her dismissal to the HCPC.
Ms Lemonofides was struck off the medical register after the panel found she was guilty of serious misconduct.
