NHS paramedic Joshua Sharp took photos of dead patient and sent them to friends on Facebook

An NHS paramedic has escaped a professional ban after it was revealed he sent images of a patient’s decomposing body to colleagues via social media.

North West Ambulance Service worker Joshua Sharp was instead cautioned for his “appalling” and “deplorable” actions.

The paramedic expressed deep regret for his behavior and described it as an “error of judgement”.

A court heard Mr Sharp attended an incident with colleagues in February 2022 where they discovered a patient who was dead and in a state of decomposition.

He took photographs of the body, showed them to a colleague, and sent them via WhatsApp to another with the instruction: “Do not send, I would rather be fired.”

He then shared the footage with a different colleague on Facebook Messenger.

The next day, he was advised to delete the images and tell those he shared them with to delete them as well.

He later deleted the footage and told a colleague: “Please don’t send it, I’ve been told I’ll probably be fired for this.”

He told another: “I was told to delete his photos, management will be thrown off course if he gets fired and the university finds out.”

He also added: “If anyone asks, you get it yourself.”

Mr Sharp was later interviewed during an investigation by NWAS and admitted taking two photographs of the patient.

He said he panicked when he realized it was being shared around.

He was made redundant in September 2022, but later managed to find work in the adult A&E department at the Royal Derby Hospital.

The Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service (HCPTS) issued him a formal caution for his behavior, which will remain on its record for three years.

He told the hearing: “The more I think about it, the more clearly I now realize the seriousness of my actions.

“Taking a photograph of a dying patient was a violation of dignity, trust and professional boundaries.

“Sharing these images was an even more serious failure. Trying to conceal my actions compounded the seriousness of the initial abuse.

“I recognize that the public should be able to trust healthcare professionals to demonstrate integrity, professionalism and respect for patients at all times, including after death. My actions fell far short of that.”

The hearing chairman concluded: “The panel reached the following conclusion: [Mr Sharp’s] The actions taken while taking photographs of a dying patient were appalling.

“That alone merited a finding of misconduct.

“But instead of deleting the images, [Mr Sharp’s] The behavior had become cumulatively worse due to an accelerating series of bad decisions.

“He shared the images with his colleagues, knowing the consequences.

“He then attempted to protect himself from these consequences by persuading a colleague to pretend they had taken the footage, despite knowing the consequences for them if action was taken and believed.

“The panel concluded that such behavior would be considered deplorable by colleagues.

“This was not appropriate [Mr Sharp] “There was no appropriate professional justification for taking or storing photographs of a deceased patient, especially on a personal device, and for doing so.”