Nursing and Midwifery Council determination — substantive hearing
NMC panel strikes off nurse Xoisa Hlatshwayo over forged drug records and sleeping on duty
The Nursing and Midwifery Council's Fitness to Practise Committee has struck off nurse Xoisa Hlatshwayo after finding she forged a colleague's signature in the controlled drug book and repeatedly slept on duty at a care home. The panel found her dishonesty premeditated and longstanding.
MedicWatch editorial · Published 30 April 2026 · Updated 11 July 2026
Erasure (struck off the register)
Added to MedicWatch: 11 July 2026Report a correction
What does “struck off the register” mean?
Being struck off (the regulator calls this "erasure") removes the practitioner from the register. They are no longer permitted to practise this profession in the UK. Erasure can be reviewed after a minimum of five years, but is otherwise indefinite.
Concerning Xoisa Hlatshwayo, nurse (Nursing and Midwifery Council 09F2144E).
Decision date: 30 April 2026 · Hearing started 22 April 2026 and ended 30 April 2026
In plain English
The NMC's Fitness to Practise Committee found that adult nurse Xoisa Hlatshwayo failed to follow controlled drugs procedures at a care home, forged a colleague's signature in the controlled drug book, sought to persuade the colleague to sign records for administration she had not witnessed, and slept while on duty over a prolonged period. Finding her fitness to practise impaired, the panel imposed a striking-off order and an 18-month interim suspension order.
Charges
That during the night shift on 11 to 12 April 2024 at Hollies Care Home she failed to follow the controlled drugs procedure when carrying out the controlled drugs check and when administering controlled drugs, sought to persuade Colleague A to sign documentation to reflect that she had witnessed the administration of controlled drugs when she had not, and forged Colleague A's signature in the controlled drug book (all proved by admission); that on other dates between January 2023 and 12 April 2024 she slept whilst on duty (proved), sought to persuade Colleague A to sign documentation and forged her signature in the controlled drug book (proved by admission); and that these actions were dishonest in seeking to mislead others that she had complied with controlled drugs protocols (proved in relation to the admitted charges). Charges of sleeping on duty on 11-12 April 2024, dispensing or administering medication before it was due, and removing residents' MAR charts without authorisation were found not proved.
Findings
The panel found that her actions fell seriously short of the standards expected of a registered nurse and amounted to misconduct, describing the dishonesty as premeditated, longstanding and at the upper end of the scale of seriousness. As Clinical Lead and the most senior nurse on duty she repeatedly bypassed controlled drug procedures and attempted to hide the failings through a cover-up involving forging a colleague's signature. The panel found her insight limited, identified a deep-seated attitudinal issue, and concluded her fitness to practise is impaired on both public protection and public interest grounds. It imposed a striking-off order, finding her conduct fundamentally incompatible with remaining on the register, and an interim suspension order for 18 months to cover any appeal period.
Mitigating and aggravating factors
Mitigating factors
Early admission of the facts in relation to dishonesty; evidence of safe and effective practice since the incidents; positive reports from employer; relevant training courses; and evidence of openness regarding the concerns in her discussions with colleagues, including acting as a student advocate.
Aggravating factors
Abuse of a position of trust; conduct which recklessly put people receiving care at risk of suffering harm; potential risk of significant harm to vulnerable people receiving care; deliberate breaches of the Code; a pattern of misconduct over a prolonged period of time; premeditated behaviour; limited insight; and seeking to involve a junior colleague in dishonest conduct and seeking to cover up dishonesty when challenged by the manager.
Source
All facts on this page are drawn from the publicly published Nursing and Midwifery Council determination linked below. MedicWatch does not editorialise the regulator’s findings.
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