A 20-year-old man died of swine flu and pneumonia after being advised by an Essex nurse to self-medicate instead of go to A&E.
Wickford nurse Fadzai Jaravaza was working for hotline NHS Direct in Essex when she advised the man, who called twice on Christmas Day 2010 complaining of diarrhoea, vomiting, a chesty cough and discoloured phlegm, to visit a pharmacist.
Instead of following the advice of the computer, which said the man should go to accident and emergency, Jaravaza told him to take warm drinks and cough syrup.
The unnamed man, known as Patient A, was admitted to hospital on Boxing Day 2010 and died hours later after being diagnosed with pneumonia secondary to H1N1 influenza – swine flu. He had been suffering with diarrhoea and vomiting for six days.
The 59-year-old nurse, who had been qualified for more than 30 years, will be struck off the medical register following a Nursing and Midwifery Council meeting of the Conduct and Competence Committee.
Jaravaza, who was employed for nine years at NHS Direct, took the first telephone call from Patient A in the early hours of Christmas Day 2010. She received a second call on Christmas Day morning, this time from the patient's mother, as he "had presented himself with worsening symptoms".
But "on both occasions, Ms Jaravaza advised that Patient A should seek pharmacy advice and self-medicate", the panel found.
The case of Patient A was one of seven counts of misconduct taken into consideration by the panel. Other accusations included failing to provide the correct care to patients complaining of chest pain, palpitations and breathing difficulties.
The panel found the failings of the nurse were "serious and put Patient A at risk".
The panel concluded Jaravaza "continues to present an unwarranted risk to patients and is liable to bring the profession into disrepute".
Consequently, "a striking off order is the only sanction that is sufficient to protect patients and the public interest", it was decided.
The panel also noted Jaravaz, who was not present at the hearing, had "shown a persistent lack of insight into the seriousness of her actions".
She has been given 28 days to appeal the decision.
NHS Direct operators offer advice based on the symptoms described through a computer system.
Tricia Hamilton, NHS Direct Clinical Director, said: "The assessment carried out by Fadzai Jaravaza's was completely unacceptable and does not reflect the high standard of care that NHS Direct's nurses provide to their patients.
"We continually review the calls of all our staff as part of our robust clinical governance procedures and for continuous learning and development purposes.
"We had identified some areas of Fadzai's practice that needed improvement but, before this issue, there had never been any concerns about the safety of her clinical practice.
"As soon as we were alerted to the issue, and the serious lack of clinical judgement that was displayed, Fadzai was suspended and we immediately referred the case to the NMC.
"We have since fully co-operated with their investigation."
