A NURSE who manages a firm which cares for elderly residents lied in a job interview about complaints made against her.

Kearabiloe Nkomo had two complaints lodged against her when applying for a job at a nursing agency from separate hospitals - but instead told the firm there were none.

Nkomo, an existing nurse and manager at Thoroughcare Corporation Ltd, which cares for elderly people at their homes across the Southend and Rochford boroughs, has now been suspended from the profession for three months by the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

At a tribunal held this month, it was revealed Nkomo had complaints made about her conduct at Basildon Hospital in December 2016 and in November 2015 when she worked as an agency nurse on the Dedham ward in Colchester Hospital.

Details of the complaints, which were made by staff, were not shared during the tribunal, and no further action was taken against Mrs Nkomo, but when being interviewed for a role at Athona Nursing Agency in 2017, she declared no complaints had been made, knowing this was false.

The hearing panel, chaired by Sophie Lomas, found that Nkomo’s actions were dishonest and had undermined the trust between nurse and patients.

In a statement sent to the panel, Nkomo acknowledged her deceit and she had “let people down”.

She said: “When a nurse is honest and keeps a high level of integrity, others respond to what she says or does without even realising it. The reputation is improved when a nurse works with honest and integrity.

“By me being dishonest, I feel I have discouraged those nurses and patients who were looking at me as a good example.”

Tribunal chairwoman Sophie Lomas said: “Deliberately concealing there had been previous complaints, circumvents an employer’s or potential employer’s opportunity to carry out their own risk assessments, ensuring the registrant does not present risks to patients and/or colleagues and is a fit and proper person to employ.”