Health and Care Professions Council determination — substantive hearing
HCPTS suspends Stefania Antonucci for five months
A conduct panel suspended speech and language therapist Stefania Antonucci after finding inappropriate delegation created a patient-safety risk and remained insufficiently remediated.
MedicWatch editorial · Published 23 February 2024 · Updated 23 September 2026
Suspension (suspended from practice) — 5 months
Data last checked: 23 September 2026Report a correction
What does “suspended from practice” mean?
The regulator imposed a fixed-term suspension in this decision. Its start date, appeal provisions and any later review affect whether it is currently in force. Check the official register for the practitioner's current status.
Concerning Stefania Antonucci, speech and language therapist (Health and Care Professions Council SL27146).
Decision date: 23 February 2024 · Hearing started 19 February 2024 and ended 23 February 2024
In plain English
The HCPTS panel found that speech and language therapist Stefania Antonucci inappropriately delegated a swallowing assessment without obtaining a sufficient history, creating a patient-safety risk. It found misconduct and current impairment, but not dishonesty, and suspended her registration for five months.
Charges
The allegations concerned failing to obtain a sufficiently detailed history before considering a swallow assessment for Service User C, inappropriately instructing a nurse to conduct an assessment, and retrospectively recording a Level 0 fluids assessment for Service User A. Dishonesty was also alleged.
Findings
The panel found the clinical delegation allegations proved and amounting to misconduct, but did not find the dishonesty allegation proved. It found current impairment on personal and public grounds because insight was very limited, meaningful remediation was absent and repetition remained a risk. It imposed a five-month suspension and an interim suspension for up to 18 months pending the appeal period.
Mitigating and aggravating factors
Mitigating factors
the incident was isolated; the Registrant was working from home and therefore could not access the patient’s medical records or attend on the patient at the Hospital; she was suffering from stress at the time; no actual harm was caused to the patient.
Aggravating factors
the Registrant has shown very limited insight; she has taken no meaningful steps in remediation of the misconduct; she has neither apologised nor shown remorse for the misconduct; her misconduct created a risk of harm to a patient.
Source
All facts on this page are drawn from the publicly published Health and Care Professions Council determination linked below. MedicWatch does not editorialise the regulator’s findings.
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