An Edinburgh hospital patient who told of the 'crushing distress and flashbacks' she has experienced after a nurse was found guilty of engaging in sexual activity with her.
The mental health nurse was spared a jail sentence after being found guilty of engaging in sexual activity with the survivor while he worked a nightshift on an NHS psychiatric ward at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital.
Richard McLellan was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for three years and ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work in the community. The patient was being treated for a mental disorder at the capital’s Royal Edinburgh Hospital in 2019.
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The disgraced staff nurse from Bathgate, West Lothian has now been sacked and following the sentencing on Friday July 15, the survivor has bravely opened up about their experience of reporting the incident and reliving it as a case was built for court.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live the survivor who does not wish to be named said: "Richard Mclellan was my Key Worker, a night nurse with special responsibilities for my care. I was meant to be protected by the NHS and am disappointed that they failed in their duty of care of me as a vulnerable patient.
"There were many red flags. It has been over three years of crushing distress and flashbacks, and I have been diagnosed with PTSD." They continued: "I have been surrounded by incredible people, especially from Rape Crisis Scotland. I even managed to attend a survivors meeting with the Justice Committee at Parliament, organised by Rape Crisis, to tell my story.
"Also, my community mental health team where each member of staff has heard my story over and over again, like a broken record.
"Richard was a bad apple, the overwhelming majority of nurses and doctors do their job for the pure reason of wanting to help others, making a powerful impact that shouldn't be overlooked."
On the outcome of the court case they said: "I always thought community service was a joke for somebody abusing their position of power, painting a wall, picking up litter all seems disproportionate, but the fact he's now on the Sex Offenders Register and unable to work as a nurse means vulnerable people are protected from him. However, something concrete needs to change in the NHS and legal systems."
Brenna Jessie, Communications and Participation Coordinator at Rape Crisis Scotland said: “Reporting sex crimes can be an incredibly difficult decision to make for many people, and one that is made even more daunting by the very low numbers of convictions for sexual crimes.
"Where cases do progress to court this can often be a lengthy, drawn out and difficult process that demand a lot of time and energy from survivors, no matter the verdict.
"We know the difference that Rape Crisis advocacy and support can make to survivors thinking of reporting or engaging in the process, and the impact that this support made in this case.
"We pay tribute to this survivor’s determination and resilience and thank her for her commitment to working with us to try improve the system, even when this was ongoing."
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Tracey McKigen, Services Director for the Royal Edinburgh and Associated Services at NHS Lothian, also said: “We extend our full sympathies to the victim in this distressing case.
"Whilst we can’t comment on individual members of staff, current or former, we want to offer reassurance that as soon as we become aware of a serious criminal allegation, we will take immediate and robust action in the interests of patient safety, which is always our top priority.”
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