AN AYRSHIRE nurse who turned up to work ‘drunk’ has been struck off.

Registered nurse Elaine Mckenzie has been banned from the profession after showing up for work at two-and-a-half times the legal drink drive limit.

A Nursing and Midwifery Council hearing was told that Mckenzie was employed as a band 6 Out of Hours Coordinator for the District Nursing Services when she turned up to start a shift on March 18, 2016 and was deemed unfit “due to consumption of alcohol”.

A previous hearing heard that Mckenzie was required to undertake breath tests, which, over a period of approximately one hour, provided three positive results for alcohol.

Following the tests, Mckenzie was escorted home and suspended from working pending an investigation.

Mckenzie was then dismissed at a disciplinary hearing on August 25, 2016. The NMC panel heard evidence which “demonstrated that Mrs Mckenzie’s alcohol consumption had taken place before commencing work that day, and that her consumption level was more than double the Scottish drink driving limit.”

Michael Bellis, case presenter for the NMC said Mckenzie’s conduct “showed poor judgement, and put patients at serious risk of harm.”

He added that Mckenzie’s actions fell significantly short of the standards expected of a registered nurse, and that her actions amounted to a breach of the Code.”

She was originally given a 12 month suspension at a previous hearing but the panel struck Mckenzie off after hearing she had “failed to cooperate with the NMC’s investigation” and twice refused to consent to a health assessment.

Mckenzie sent an email to the NMC on February 20, 2018, in which she wanted to move on from what had happened.

She said: “As you can understand this has went on for quite some time and if possible I would like to move on now and proceed with my life thank you.”

Mckenzie’s striking off order will come into effect on December 28, 2019