Daniel Potter appears before VCAT for inappropriate conduct

A Melbourne nurse has beens outed for kissing and cuddling a vulnerable female patient after bombarding her with Facebook messages, asking “ya sleep naked much?”.

Melbourne nurse Daniel Potter has been reprimanded for crossing professional boundaries by cuddling and kissing a vulnerable female patient.

A Melbourne nurse crossed professional boundaries by hugging and kissing a vulnerable female patient he said he was “always attracted to”, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal has ruled.

Daniel Potter has been reprimanded and disqualified from applying for registration as a health practitioner for 12 months for taking advantage of a patient with mental health issues over a three-week period in a Melbourne hospital in late 2021.

VCAT has suppressed the name of the hospital to protect the patient’s privacy.

After being informed of his conduct, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia restricted his work to treating only male patients and referred the matter to VCAT.

Potter sent the patient a flurry of Facebook messages, including saying “I was always attracted to you’; and asking “Ya sleep naked much?”

A Melbourne nurse attracted to a female patient hugged and kissed her over a three-week period, VCAT has heard.

He also wrote: “I really shoudla cuddled ya more. The kisses got ya dizzy haha. I’ll slide in for cuddles one night before ya leave, ya sleep so elegantly hahah I’m just like oh she needs it”.

VCAT said Potter kissed her on multiple occasions, including once on the lips as well as smoking a cigarette with the patient.

In a statement to VCAT, Potter admitted laying in bed with her while on nightshift and kissing and cuddling her.

He said he had not kept his relationship with his patient secret at work but agreed he did not inform the appropriate people so that it could be managed within the hospital environment.

The patient told VCAT she has lost trust in male medical professionals and has had a psychiatric admission soon after her discharge from the hospital where the conduct occurred. She said Potter’s conduct has had impacted on her relationship with her husband.

The Board said Potter undermined public trust and confidence in the nursing profession by taking advantage of a vulnerable patient for his own emotional and physical desires.

VCAT agreed, saying Potter was aware that he was breaching a professional boundary.