A north-east midwife who deliberately drugged 15 pregnant women has been struck off by her profession.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) found that Kirsteen Stewart, from Newmachar, had behaved in a “harmful” manner to the mothers-to-be and their unborn children.
Mrs Stewart – who claims she has done nothing wrong and that there is no evidence against her – will now be banned from working as a nurse or midwife for at least five years.
On Thursday, the watchdog found the 49-year-old guilty of the charges, and said they had been committed in an apparent bid to make her work easier.
Yesterday, on the final day of a hearing in Edinburgh, the panel ruled that banning Mrs Stewart from working as a nurse and a midwife was the only appropriate sanction that could be handed out.
The panel determined that public confidence in the profession would be damaged if Mrs Stewart was allowed to continue to work as a midwife.
She will not be able to re-apply for registration for at least five years.
The panel also imposed an 18-month interim suspension order to cover the duration of Mrs Stewart’s appeal period, should she choose to challenge the NMC’s decision.
Mrs Stewart has 28 days to submit an appeal against the sanction.
In its written determination, the panel stated: “Mrs Stewart has accepted no responsibly for the serious situations faced by the mothers nor has she shown any remorse.
“The panel therefore formed the view that there would be a continued risk to patient safety if she were allowed to practice. ”
The NMC had earlier found that Mrs Stewart’s actions had caused 13 mothers to undergo emergency caesarean sections after they were given Syntocinon, a drug which causes the uterus muscles to contract.
No babies died as a result of the surgeries, but two had to be resuscitated at birth and one had to spend time in a neonatal unit.
Mrs Stewart was suspended from Aberdeen Maternity Hospital in 2010 after her colleagues raised concerns about her clinical practice.
She was later sacked by NHS Grampian and suspended from her profession by the NMC.
Police launched an investigation when concerns were first raised, but decided in 2012 they would not take action.
However, on Thursday, the Crown Office said it could reopen the investigation if more evidence became available.