Nursing aide cleared of throwing urine bottle at patient, sues for lost overtime

A State home for the elderly is being sued for damages by a nursing aide who was suspended after being accused of throwing a urine bottle at a patient, only to be reinstated after an inquiry did not find enough evidence to support the allegation.

In a court application filed by lawyer Tonio Azzopardi on behalf of 52-year-old Redent Pintley, the plaintiff explains that he had been working extra hours at St Vincent De Paul on 15 October, 2015 when the alleged bottle-throwing incident occurred.

Pintley is denying any wrongdoing. In his application the man requests the court to award him damages on the grounds that his right to a fair hearing had been breached. He also claims to have been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment.

In a declaration he made to management five days after the alleged incident, Pintley had pointed out that the patient in question was suffering from serious mental health issues and had just urinated in a mug which care workers had given him. Six other patients had been willing to corroborate his version of events, Pintley claimed.

The nursing aide was at first forbidden from performing further overtime at Mater Dei, but was then suspended in early November pending the outcome of an internal investigation into claims that he had “beaten a patient”.

Pintley complained to the Public Service Commission, claiming to have been the subject of an unfair suspension by the CEO of the home Josianne Cutajar. The PSC had found in his favour, instructing the CEO to lift the man’s suspension and refund the half of his salary that he was not paid during his suspension.

But in the court application, the man highlighted the fact that in spite of this refund, he had still lost around €600 in wages for extra Sundays which he had not been allowed to work.

Dr Cutajar testified before Mr Justice Silvio Meli in the the Constitutional Court today.

She said that Pintley’s temporary suspension order had been issued on 3 November, upon her being informed of the allegations by the Mater Dei authorities. Disciplinary proceedings against Pintley were dropped around two weeks later due to insufficient evidence and the CEO had requested Pintley's reinstatement by the PSC. However, she had only received clearance to reinstate the nursing aide, from the PSC, on 3 December.