Nurse gave baby morphine overdose

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A premature baby was given a day's morphine treatment in just 11 minutes after a mix-up over syringes, a disciplinary hearing has heard.

Staff nurse Eva Serenio, 49, was found guilty of misconduct at a hearing of the Nursing and Midwifery Council(NMC).

Ms Serenio admitted giving the morphine solution to a baby born at 27 weeks, named only as Baby A, while working at Bradford Royal Infirmary in 2004.

She had believed she was giving the child human albumin solution (HAS).

The conduct and competence committee of the NMC ruled Ms Serenio's "fitness to practise" was impaired after hearing she had not checked the label on the syringe.

It has really devastated me because I love taking care of babies Eva Serenio

As a result, Baby A, who weighed just 0.8 kgs, was given morphine intended for another baby.

David Glendinning, for the NMC said: "Effectively - in addition to the prescribed morphine - Baby A had received approximately the equivalent of 24 hours of treatment with morphine over a period of 11 minutes."

Baby A later died but an inquest ruled the high dose of morphine had not caused his death.

Ms Serenio's mistake was discovered by a pharmacist during routine rounds in the unit.

When asked by the nurse in charge why Baby A had Baby C's morphine she "put her hand across her mouth, gasped and said it should be HAS", the hearing was told.

Ms Serenio had also admitted a second charge of failing to perform an adequate checking procedure on 30 January 2005 when giving discharge medication of eye drops and folic acid to a different baby, the NMC heard.

'Full of remorse'

The committee heard the D-grade staff nurse trained in the Philippines and worked in the Middle East before coming to the UK in 2002.

She was sacked in March 2005 after her second error was discovered and is now working in a nursing home with people with mental health and "challenging behaviour".

Ms Serenio, who up until the errors had 24 years of "unblemished" service, wept during the hearing and told the committee: "It has really devastated me because I love taking care of babies."

Sarah Christie-Brown, on behalf of Ms Serenio, said she was "full of remorse".

The committee adjourned until Wednesday to consider what, if any sanctions, they would take against Ms Serenio.