Nurse struck off for 'deplorable' images offences

The nurse uploaded one of the images to Snapchat at work, the panel heard

A nurse convicted for possessing hundreds of "extreme" indecent images of children she accessed while at work has been struck off for a "gross breach of trust", a panel has said.

Rebecca Ruler, a ward manager at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, was handed a suspended sentence in 2023 for a number of serious sexual offences.

A Nursing and Midwifery Council committee heard police uncovered her offending by tracing an indecent image she uploaded to Snapchat to the IP address of the hospital where she was working.

The panel found her conviction made her unfit to practice as her actions "seriously undermined public trust" and were "fundamentally incompatible" with being a nurse.

'Deplorable'

Ruler was referred to the regulator by the trust after she was arrested on suspicion of indecent image offences in 2022, the panel heard.

Some were indecent images of children, while others were described to the panel as "extreme, obscene, and grossly offensive" images involving animals.

She pleaded guilty to making the indecent images of children and publishing obscene material at Preston Crown Court and was given a suspended sentence, the hearing heard.

Panel members said the offences would be considered "deplorable" by the public and fellow staff, and raised serious concerns about the risk she posed to others.

They said striking her off was the only option to protect patients and maintain professional standards.

Other reasons listed for her dismissal include her bringing the profession into disrepute and "seriously undermining" public trust in nursing.