We all need somebody
Wow, looking at when I last posted here it has been a couple of months that seem to have shot by. After an August holiday month, it was back to work in September and since that return, I have been busier and busier. Over the past three weeks ending today, I have spent 13 of the 15 working days in hearings in London, in 4 different hearings. I'm tired now!
So, what happened in your hearings Marc, I hear you ask. Well, hearing No 1 was a four day hearing for a social worker who admitted plagiarism in both her work and her study. Both the study and the work was around the area of DOLS. Unsurprisingly, the HCPC alleged that the plagiarism on both counts was dishonest. After hearing evidence and submissions from my client and I, the panel concluded that the appropriate outcome was a conditions of practice order, that in essence restricted my client from carrying out DOLS work until she had retrained and shown proficiency under supervision. From a starting point of potential strike off or suspension, this was a fantastic result for the social worker.
Oh, my train is just pulling into Cambridge after today's hearing, so I will come back to this and update as to the other three hearings a little later!
Right, back to the cases. Hearing No 2 was in respect of a newly qualified social worker who was accused of incompetence and dishonest behaviour, including failing to disclose conditions of practice to prospective employers. This was a five day case, split over two weeks and ending today. Strategically, I only asked my client to attend for the first 3 days. They gave evidence, which we had prepared for in a lengthy video conference call, and I then made my submissions. After considering the matter for over a day, and despite concluding that my client had been dishonest in respect of the conditions of practice, the panel decided that my client's fitness to practice was not currently impaired. We would have taken a conditions of practice order as a result, so a finding of no current impairment was incredible - but if you don't ask, you don't get (yes, of course I asked)!
Hearing No 3 was slotted into the middle of Hearing No 2 (crazy scheduling by the HCPC, nothing unusual there!) and concerned a social worker who was accused of failing to escalate a report of a shaken baby, and 3 other matters. Through negotiation with my very reasonable opponent, we narrowed the case down to the one allegation, the failure to escalate. Again, my client gave evidence and then left me to get on with the heavy lifting, and after another set of submissions, the panel found they also were not currently impaired.
Hearing No 4 was at the beginning of this week.It was the hearing of a restoration application by a nurse who over 13 years ago had been convicted of possession of 2 fake passports and having used on of them to get NHS bursaries (over £30,000 worth).She was nervous in the hearing but gave