Former colleague testifies in nurse trial

A former colleague of a nurse charged with poisoning two patients has told a jury that she saw her "brutally dart" an injection into one of them before throwing water over him and threatening him.

Ms Sinead Noonan-Noctor told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on day-seven of the trial that the patient had been shouting for help before the alleged assault on him in the early hours of the morning.

Ms Noreen Mulholland, aged 35, now living in Park Road, Portadown, County Armagh and previously of Runabeg Close, Kildare, who has pleaded not guilty to four charges in relation to two elderly patients at Naas General Hospital in 2003.

Ms Mulholland denies assault causing harm to Mr John Gethings, aged 77, Baltinglass, County Wicklow and to intentionally or recklessly administering a substance to him knowing it was capable of interfering substantially with his bodily functions without his consent on March 1, 2003.

Ms Mulholland also denied assaulting Mr Seamus Doherty, aged 80, Rathcoffey, Naas, County Kildare causing him harm and intentionally or recklessly administering a substance to him knowing it was capable of interfering substantially with his bodily functions without his consent between June18-19, 2003.

Ms Orla Crowe BL, prosecuting, has told the jury that Mr Gethings died on March 2, 2003 but emphasised that it was not the State’s case that Ms Mulholland was responsible for his death.

Ms Noonan-Noctor, a staff-nurse at Naas General Hospital, said Mr Doherty was under the care of Ms Mulholland that night and he had been calling out aloud and shouting for help.

At about 4am and 5am Ms Mulholland said she was going to check on him and came back shortly to say she was going to give him Serenase to calm him down.

Ms Noonan-Noctor agreed to check the drugs for her the accused and waited for her to return with the them but she then saw the accused walk past her with the Serenase and go over to Mr Doherty’s bed.

She followed and saw Ms Mulholland draw up the drug quickly and push Mr Doherty onto his left side before she "very roughly darted" the needle into his right buttock using a 16 gauge white needle.

Ms Noonan-Noctor told Ms Crowe that Ms Mulholland told Mr Doherty to "shut up" after he "yelped out" she then threw a half glass of water over him. She stepped outside the curtain in shock but when she stepped in again she saw the accused holding the needle in her fist.

She asked Ms Mulholland what she was doing and she replied that the accused turned around and told her that she was threatening Mr Doherty.

Ms Noonan-Noctor said she was never asked by Ms Mulholland to sign Mr Doherty’s prescription chart, as would be required and when she checked it later there was no intra muscular injection prescribed for him, as Ms Mulholland had administered him, and there was no prescription for Serenase.

She said she "couldn’t believe" what she had seen and that Ms Mulholland had approached her later in the shift to apologise for "loosing the head".

She told Ms Crowe that a 16 gauge white needle was never used for intra muscular injections and that Ms Mulholland had not cleaned or swabbed the area of Mr Doherty’s buttock before she injected him.

The trial continues before Judge Frank O’Donnell and a jury of six women and six men.