Nurse who stole more than £100,000 from patients struck off
Nurse struck off from the Nursing and Midwifery register for stealing £103,203 from three patients in his care said he had been ‘blinded’ by the money
A nurse who stole more than £100,000 from three vulnerable hospital patients, saying he was a good nurse ‘blinded’ by the money, has been struck off by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
Kelvin Ramasta was jailed for four and a half years in 2024 after pleading guilty to three counts of theft from older vulnerable patients in his care at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge in 2021 and 2022, an NMC fitness to practise report said. He admitted stealing:
- £102,000 from Person A.
- £203.29 from person B.
- £1,000 from person C.
Addenbrooke's trust suspended nurse when evidence of thefts from patients’ bank accounts emerged
The nurse’s bank contacted the police about suspicious activity, after £101,000 was transferred into his account, usually in instalments of £1,000, between November 2021 and April 2022. The transfers were from an account linked to Person A, who was living with dementia and was in Addenbrooke’s Hospital in November 2021 and January 2022.
In April 2022, Person C’s husband received a call from their bank about suspicious activity. When the family visited the hospital, Person C’s bank card was missing. Days later, the bank said a cheque for £1,000 had been received and was made payable to Mr Ramasta, the report added.
‘I was just blinded by the money and I’m sorry. Now I’m trying to build a new path and provide a better future for my kids’
Kelvin Ramasta, in evidence to NMC
Mr Ramasta was suspended by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust April 2022 and dismissed in January 2023.
The panel noted sentencing remarks by the Peterborough Crown Court judge, who said the nurse stole all he could, using the money for gambling, buying luxury items, food and travel.
Nurse who stole patients’ money told NMC of his sorrow, and that he had been a good nurse
In June 2024, Mr Ramasta told the NMC he had only admitted the charges to get a lesser sentence. But four months later, he expressed regret. He told the regulator: ‘I’ve made a mistake but I know I’m a good nurse and have the skills of an excellent nurse. I helped a lot of patients by providing quality care during COVID and post-COVID times.
‘I was just blinded by the money and I’m sorry. I genuinely feel sorry for all the family I've mistaken with [sic]. Now I’m trying to start again and build a new path, to have a fresh start and provide a better future for my kids.’
The NMC panel concluded that, given Mr Ramasta had stolen from three different patients on numerous occasions in a premeditated and sophisticated manner, there would be high risk of repetition.
It struck him off the register, with an 18-month interim suspension order. He was given 28 days to appeal.
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