NHS Trust settles with Christian nurse suspended in trans row

A Christian nurse who was suspended for 10 months after allegedly misgendering a transgender patient has received a settlement from the NHS. 

Jennifer Melle was suspended by her employer, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust, after she refused to make use of the popular pronouns of a female-identifying trans patient who was a convicted paedophile and had been brought in for treatment from a male prison. 

The Trust reported her to the skilled regulator for nurses, and investigated her over her stance on the pronouns through the incident in addition to for going to the press about her experience. 

She was suspended and investigated despite being threatened and racially abused by the patient. 

A disciplinary panel later found that no misconduct had occurred and in February she was reinstated to her job. 

The Trust settled with Melle just days before a trial was to start at Croydon Employment Tribunal on Monday.

The terms of the settlement are legally required to stay confidential, said the Christian Legal Centre (CLC), which is supporting her. 

The Trust also confirmed that it has issued a written warning to the patient that threatening and racially offensive language won’t be tolerated and will end in him being banned from the Trust’s premises.

Commenting on the consequence, Melle said she was “glad” the Trust “has finally decided to increase an olive branch to me” and said she was grateful to the Lord Jesus and the CLC for standing by her during “the darkest days of my life”.

“I look ahead to having the ability to give attention to the job I really like as an alternative of defending myself against various bizarre accusations,” she said. 

“It should never have come to this. No nurse or other medical professionals should ever need to face what I actually have faced simply for telling the reality, doing their job, and reporting racist abuse and physical threats from a patient.”

She continued, “My ordeal matters not just for me, but for each nurse who should find a way to practise in response to conscience, biological reality, and basic safeguarding principles without fear.”

Melle remains to be the topic of two investigations by the Nursing and Midwifery Council. She said the very fact she remains to be being investigated “should alarm everyone who cares about fairness, safeguarding, and free speech in our NHS”.

“I’ll proceed to arise, not only for myself, but for all nurses who deserve protection and respect,” she said. 

CLC chief executive Andrea Williams said: “Jennifer’s case has been probably the most concerning we’ve ever seen. A dedicated Christian nurse with a spotless 12‑12 months record was treated because the offender while the person, who racially abused and physically threatened her, was treated because the victim.”

She added, “Jennifer has shown remarkable courage. We will stand along with her until these remaining injustices are fully resolved.”