Orchid View nurse suspended for 12 months

Singh was found guilty of misconduct at Orchid View, which was later closed

A nurse who worked at a West Sussex care home which a coroner said was riddled with "institutionalised abuse" has been suspended for 12 months.

Sadeo Singh, who worked at Orchid View in Copthorne, was found guilty of misconduct by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

It heard he grabbed an elderly resident by the wrists and pulled her from her wheelchair to her feet.

He also failed to assess or attend to a resident who was in pain.

Closed and reopened

Singh was charged with five offences between 24 November 2009 and April 2010 when Orchid View was run by Southern Cross.

The company has since gone out of business and the home was closed and reopened under a new name and management.

An inquest last year which looked into the unexplained deaths of 19 residents at Orchid View found that neglect contributed to five of them.

West Sussex coroner Penelope Schofield said the home was "mismanaged and understaffed".

'Attention-seeking'

During a four-day hearing, the NMC was told the daughters of the wheelchair-user resident told Singh she could not bear her own weight.

But he pulled her to feet on the day she arrived at Orchid View.

On another occasion, when one daughter was feeding her mother, he said: "If you do that she'll never get better".

All the charges against him were found proved.

The NMC heard telephone evidence from an administrator who blew the whistle over a number of incidents at Orchid View and who gave evidence at the inquest.