NHS nurse Elaine Sullivan, who told colleague ‘I could destroy you’, struck from register after campaign of bullying

A senior nurse was removed from the professional register after bullying 13 NHS staff and threatening one of them, warning: “I could destroy you at any moment.”

Described as “scary”, Elaine Sullivan left nurses feeling humiliated by ordering them to “keep their voices down” and telling them “you don’t have the capacity to talk to me”.

The court heard the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Team nurse fostered a “toxic and hostile” working environment and once told a colleague she would “never let you work with clients again”.

Other misconduct included Ms. Sullivan incorrectly describing herself in the court report as the “clinical leader” on the unit; which later led to a child being taken away from his mother on her advice.

He also engaged in “gossip” by revealing private information about his colleagues, such as claims that they were “abused as children” or that he had a “history of heroin abuse.”

Following a Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) tribunal, Ms Sullivan’s name was officially struck from the records.

At the time of the complaints she was working as a Band 8a nurse and therapist in Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust’s Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Team.

A referral to the NMC was made by the trust’s deputy director in August 2020, after numerous complaints about his behavior emerged.

Ms. Sullivan pleaded guilty to all charges against her.

The hearing heard that 13 different colleagues complained about his behavior over 10 months.

He was exposed as a “dishonest” when he wrote in a 2019 court report that he was a “clinical lead” on the Parent Infant Mental Health Link Team.

This led to the child being removed from his mother on the advice of Ms. Sullivan.

Colleagues gave evidence that Ms Sullivan had told people on the unit on numerous occasions that she was the clinical leader.

He also “acted outside the scope of his authority” when diagnosing a patient with dissociative identity disorder, whose name cannot be disclosed for legal reasons.

The hearing was told that Sullivan created an “intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment” by making a series of comments to colleagues and “bullying” them.

Read more: NHS Trust issues apology after culture report highlights bullying concerns

He told a colleague, who cannot be named for legal reasons, that they were “too much” and that they should “turn the volume down”.

Ms Sullivan told another colleague: “I could destroy you at any moment” and “you don’t have the capacity to talk to me.”

He was also found to have violated confidentiality by revealing private information about his colleagues.

He told a colleague that another colleague had “filed a bullying complaint” and “lost his mind and threw a book at me”.

She said one colleague was a “lesbian” and the other was a “stepchild.”

The board ruled his behavior amounted to “bullying” and serious misconduct.

Fiona Abbott, chair of the panel, said: “The panel determined that Ms Sullivan’s actions would be considered deplorable by fellow practitioners in the context of the professional nursing environment.

“His misconduct was repeated on multiple occasions involving 13 different colleagues and continued over a period of approximately ten months (the charges cover the period from March 2019 to December 2019).

“The panel determined that this made Ms. Sullivan’s misconduct particularly serious and indicated an attitudinal problem.

“The Panel noted that NMC, in its Notice of Case, described Ms Sullivan’s behavior towards her colleagues as ‘bullying’. It noted that Ms Sullivan was not accused of ‘bullying’.”

“However, the panel concluded that his behavior amounted to bullying.

“The panel was of the view that Ms Sullivan’s behavior and actions contributed to a toxic, hostile and unsafe workplace where everyone was watching their backs, talking over each other and unsure whether their privacy was protected.

“The panel found that Ms. Sullivan caused harm.

“Not only did many of her colleagues confirm that they had suffered emotional distress and harm, but a child was removed from his mother as a result of Ms. Sullivan’s report, in which Sullivan falsely claimed that she was a ‘clinical leader,’ misleading others that she was holding authority in such a role and was acting outside her scope of practice.”

“Moreover, another patient was misdiagnosed.”

Ms Sullivan said of her actions: “I also think it took me a long time to process and think about my actions because of how embarrassed I was.

“Violating my colleagues’ privacy is what I am most ashamed of, and even sadder, I don’t have a clear answer as to why I did it.

“I feel deeply ashamed of this, especially since it took me some time after my dismissal to truly understand how unprofessional I had acted and what a distressing impact this had on my colleagues.

“I am very sorry for this and hope I have presented contributing factors but it is no excuse and I believe I should be struck off the NMC register.

“When I think through a therapist hat of how I understand why someone suddenly gossips and shares information with colleagues when they have never done so before, I would assume they want to feel important, special, or powerful.

“I don’t remember consciously breaking people’s trust, but I do remember that it was a time when I felt worthless, overwhelmed and hurt, and so my deepest regret is that I best understand my shameful behavior.”