A Nigerian-born nurse, Chimzuruoke Okembunachi, has had her nursing license cancelled in Australia after a tribunal found she repeatedly slept during night shifts at an aged care facility, putting elderly patients at risk and causing them to miss critical medication doses.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/TheNigerialawyer-WhatsApp-Channel1.jpg")
The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, ruled that Ms Okembunachi’s actions in March 2024 amounted to professional misconduct, leading to the cancellation of her nursing registration.
The 25-year-old nurse began working at Hardi Aged Care (HAC) in Guildford, western Sydney, in February 2024. Barely a month later, she was suspended and subsequently resigned from her position.
During the tribunal proceedings, it emerged that between March 13 and 27, 2024, Okembunachi was the sole registered nurse on night shifts supervising three or four assistants-in-nursing (AINs) and approximately 100 elderly residents.
The tribunal panel heard that on six of these nights, she failed to discharge her duties and responsibilities as she slept while on duty.
On three occasions, patients missed prescribed doses of morphine because the nurse was asleep, the tribunal noted.
Evidence presented to the tribunal showed that during her fifth night shift from March 21 to 22, Ms Okembunachi was awakened by an AIN who turned on the light in the nurses’ station.
However, a minute later, the nurse turned the light back off, apparently to continue sleeping.
The tribunal also heard that on March 15, the nurse told an AIN to give a male patient Panadol to help get rid of his foot pain, despite the assistant not being authorized to administer medication.
The assistant reportedly asked Ms Okembunachi: “Are you sure? We are not allowed to provide medication directly.”
The nurse’s reply, the tribunal noted, was “It’s okay sister, just give it to him.”
Ms Okembunachi was reported to her bosses by two nurses on March 27, and was informed via email the next day that her employment had been suspended with a request for a meeting.
Twenty minutes after receiving the suspension email, Ms Okembunachi tendered her resignation and declined to attend the meeting.
Following a complaint to the Health Care Complaints Commission, which brought the tribunal case against the nurse, her nursing registration was suspended pending the hearing.
Born in Nigeria, Ms Okembunachi moved to Australia in 2018 and graduated with a Bachelor of Nursing Science from University of the Sunshine Coast in 2021.
She then embarked on a graduate degree in medicine at Western Sydney University (WSU), which she balanced with her work at HAC while suffering from migraines.
During her second degree, Ms Okembunachi had to take a leave of absence after failing the mid-year anatomy exam. She then returned to her studies in 2024.
Early that year, the tribunal heard that her younger sister required an expensive surgery for a scoliosis condition, which cost their father about $60,000.
“These events caused me significant stress and influenced my decision to cease agency work in favour of more permanent employment,” Ms Okembunachi told the tribunal.
In her testimony, Ms Okembunachi expressed remorse and accepted responsibility for her actions.
“In hindsight, I should have not applied for, or accepted, the position at Hardi. I should have recognised that I had a lot of stressors going on in my life, family, health and school, and so working night shifts during the week was putting patients’ safety at risk,” she stated.
She also told the tribunal that she accepted it was her responsibility to give medication to residents.
“When I slept on night shift, I failed in supervising those staff members and the residents,” she told the hearing.
During the hearing, Ms Okembunachi said she hoped to return to nursing and, if allowed to keep working, would not do night shifts while studying at university.
However, the tribunal panel made an order to cancel Ms Okembunachi’s nursing registration on Tuesday, ruling that deregistration was necessary given the severity of the misconduct.
“The acts of the practitioner had the potential to endanger the lives of patients under her care,” the findings read.
“In our view, any order short of deregistration would be an inadequate response to the seriousness of the practitioner’s misconduct.”
Despite the harsh penalty, the panel acknowledged Ms Okembunachi’s remorse, noting that she had been “clearly remorseful and contrite… and conspicuously honest in her evidence.”
Ms Okembunachi has not worked as a nurse since her suspension but is still studying for a medicine degree at Western Sydney University.
Her father has been supporting her financially and, since February 2025, she has also been receiving a Centrelink Student Allowance, the tribunal noted.
She cannot apply for review of the cancellation order for at least nine months.
The case highlights the serious consequences of failing to meet professional standards in healthcare settings, particularly in aged care facilities where vulnerable patients depend entirely on nursing staff for critical care and medication administration.
The promotion, which commenced on January 8 and runs until February 8, 2026, offers five core maritime law books authored by Dr. Emeka Akabogu, SAN, ordinarily valued at N405,000, for just N150,000 — a 63% discount.
Interested buyers can place their orders through the following channels:
Phone: 0704 329 3271
Online Store: https://paystack.shop/aa-bookstore
Website: www.akabogulaw.com
______________________________________________________________________
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR LAWYERS: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE
Reimagine your practice with the power of AI “...this is the only Nigerian book I know of on the topic.” — Ohio Books Ltd
Authored by Ben Ijeoma Adigwe, Esq., ACIArb (UK), LL.M, Dip. in Artificial Intelligence, Director, Delta State Ministry of Justice, Asaba, Nigeria.
Bonus:
Get a FREE eBook titled “How to Use the AI in Legalpedia and Law Pavilion” with every purchase.
How to Order: 📞 Call, Text, or WhatsApp: 08034917063 | 07055285878 📧 Email: benadigwe1@gmail.com 🌐 Website: www.benadigwe.com
Ebook Version: Access directly online at: https://selar.com/prv626
________________________________________________________________________ The Law And Practice Of Redundancy In Nigeria: A Practitioner’s Guide, Authored By A Labour & Employment Law Expert Bimbo Atilola
_______________________________________________________________________
[A MUST HAVE] Evidence Act Demystified With Recent And Contemporary Cases And Materials
