Share
5th October 2022
02:38pm BST
Hughes (right) sitting in the front row during a debate on Britain on The Brink (Image: Channel 5)[/caption]
Asked by the presenter about how the NHS "broke her", Hughes, 46, said: "I could not handle the emotional stress of not being able to deliver for my patients. When you sign up to be a nurse, you sign up to put the patient at the forefront of everything you do.
"You are squeezed to a point where you cannot treat people the way you want to treat them. And it eats you up. You’re told persistently on the news that care homes are being ring fenced. It’s a lie."
She added: "I'm sorry but if you have voted conservative, you do not deserve to be resuscitated by the NHS."
https://twitter.com/TalkTV/status/1577585936447176706
Her comments certainly caused a stir amongst the audience, and Jeremy Vine stepped in to say "you can't say that". When the presenter asked the nurse if she would refuse to resuscitate a Tory, she replied: "No, of course I would".
Hughes, who left the NHS last year and works for a south London-based private healthcare company, faced even further backlash on social media, with calls for her to be investigated.
The 46-year-old has since revealed her company look set to let her go after she was accused of "bringing the company into disrepute".
Speaking to The Telegraph, she said: "They can do that to me because of their media policy. I am not allowed to say anything."
Hughes said it was anger that fuelled her to say "something inappropriate", adding: "I am being vilified for being some monster that doesn’t care and unfortunately the problem is I care too much."
The former nurse said: "Even Jeremy Vine said to me working in the NHS broke you," Hughes said, "Well yes, it has and it’s broken me again."
She added: "I can’t do what’s right and it frustrates the hell out of me because I’ve been sick myself, I’ve had to watch people die and there are no resources to help."
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), the independent regulator for nurses and nursing associates, said it had been made aware of the comments.
A spokesperson told The Telegraph: "We’ve seen a lot of tweets about a comment made yesterday on television.
"Our Code is clear that professionals on our register must promote professionalism and trust at all times.
"Where concerns are raised with us we’ll always look into it and consider taking action if needed."
Related links:
