NHS Nurse faces life ban after calling trans paedophile patient ‘Mr’ instead of ‘Ms’

The suspended nurse at the centre of the latest NHS biological sex row fears her career could now be over.

Jennifer Melle, 40, faces sanction for an alleged breach of patient confidentiality in an extraordinary case centering on claims she “misgendered” a 6ft convicted sex offender.

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The respected and popular Ugandan-born medic was hauled before a disciplinary hearing after an incident in which she refused to use female pronouns for a paedophile patient prisoner under her care.

Committed Christian Ms Melle, who has been registered as a nurse for 12 years, remains suspended from Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust after Patient X, who was born male but identifies as a woman, was taken to St Helier Hospital in Carshalton, Surrey, for treatment for a urinary condition in May last year.

Her case has been referred to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) which has the power to strike her off, barring her from ever working in the NHS again.

After her story was revealed by the Daily Express she was inundated with messages of support.

Ms Melle said: “I hugely appreciate all the support I have received from colleagues and the public. Being suspended can be a lonely place, especially when you believe you have done nothing wrong, so it means a lot.

“My case is important because it highlights the fundamental right of healthcare professionals to practice according to their conscience and deeply held beliefs, while still providing compassionate care to all patients. It’s about ensuring that Christian nurses and all healthcare workers aren’t forced to deny their beliefs and biological reality in the name of gender identity, or risk losing our livelihoods.”

The distraught senior nurse was suspended on April 2 – almost one year after the incident – for talking about her experience of racial abuse on the frontline of the NHS.

She claims the irate patient subjected her to racially aggravated assault, calling her the N-word multiple times in a terrifying verbal onslaught that left her shaken and now battling to save her career.

The abuse happened after Ms Melle used biologically accurate language when consulting a doctor about the patient’s care.

During a call Ms Melle told the medic: “Mr X would like to self-discharge.”

Overhearing the conversation, the enraged patient is said to have screamed: “Do not call me Mr! I am a woman!”

Still on the phone, Ms Melle told Patient X that she was speaking to the doctor and was working out what medication could be given before granting permission to discharge.

It is alleged she was told: “Imagine if I called you a n?” before Patient X yelled: “How about I call you n? Yes, black n*!”