Woman accused of faking nursing qualifications

Tanya Nasir, 45, is accused of deliberately lying on application forms to gain a senior nursing position

A woman has gone on trial accused of deliberately lying and "fabricating her qualifications and experience” to gain a senior nursing position at a south Wales hospital.

Tanya Nasir, 45, from Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, was accused of deliberately lying on application forms to gain a post in a unit for sick and premature babies at the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend.

Ms Nasir faces nine counts of fraud, and denies all the charges.

Cardiff Crown Court heard she also claimed to have served in the Army, saying she had been shot in Afghanistan.

The prosecution said she was never deployed in active conflict or combat.

Prosecuting, Emma Harris told the jury Ms Nasir was "responsible for the care of newborn babies", placing the "most vulnerable of patients at risk".

The court heard Ms Nasir was employed as a ward manager on the neonatal unit from September 2019 until 7 February 2020, when she was suspended by the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board.

The jury was told the role required substantial experience caring for newborn babies, and involved acting as an expert resource for the neonatal nursing team and supporting the delivery of care on the neonatal ward.

Concerns were raised in January 2020, when Ms Nasir underwent what should have been a routine three-yearly revalidation of her nursing and midwifery council registration with her line manager, Sian Townsend.

Ms Townsend became concerned about a number of "inconsistencies" in her CV, and began an investigation.

Ms Nasir resigned two days before she was due to appear before a disciplinary panel in November 2021.

She claimed to have worked with premature babies at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London between 2010 and 2015.

The court heard there was no record of her being employed there.

The jury was also told Ms Nasir claimed to have been employed with the West Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust between 2004 and 2007, and to have worked as a nurse in the adult intensive care unit at Watford General Hospital.

The human resource departments said she had never been employed by them in any capacity.

She also claimed to have been an operating department assistant, a role that would have been registered with the Health and Care Professionals Council, which confirmed it held no record in her name.

Tanya Nasir allegedly gave false information when she applied for a job as a neonatal ward manger at the Princess of Wales hospital

Ms Harris said the information Ms Nasir provided on her application forms at Cwm Taf Morgannwg and for two applications to Hillingdon Hospital in London were fraudulent and false.

"They went further than exaggerating or embellishing her qualifications. They contained degrees which she simply did not hold, they contained experience which she did not and could not have obtained,” she said.

The court was told Ms Nasir's dishonesty began in 2010 when she began studying for a diploma in Higher Nursing Education from Buckinghamshire New University, and was convicted of four counts of social security benefit fraud at West Hertfordshire Magistrates' Court.

The convictions were reported in local media and were spotted by university staff.

She was ordered to attend a fitness-to-practise meeting for failing to disclose a criminal conviction.

Ms Nasir gave the university a letter from Hertfordshire Probation Service, which said she was not under any obligation to tell them about the convictions.

The prosecution said she "fabricated the letter", which persuaded the university authorities to allow her to continue the degree course, from which she qualified in 2014.

She worked as a staff nurse assistant at the Hillingdon Hospital in London from February 2013 until October 2015. She also worked for the Spire Bushey Hospital.

When applying for a post at Hillingdon Hospital, one of the references given was from a Maj Matthew Nash-Yearwood, Commanding Officer with the Territorial Army.

The court heard Ms Nasir had joined the Army Reserve Cadet force but was discharged and struck off in May 2016.

The court was told although Maj Nash-Yearwood knew Ms Nasir, he was never approached to provide a reference, and the email address she gave for him did not belong to him.

She used the address to fabricate her own reference to bolster her fraudulent job application, the court heard.

The trial, which is due to last for a month, continues.