A nurse was caught on CCTV switching off a disabled 13-year-old’s ventilator, and her dad says she was ‘like a baby doll’ as he tried to revive her

The Crown Prosecution Service confirmed that it will no longer pursue a criminal prosecution against a nurse who was caught on camera switching off a ventilator belonging to a 13-year-old girl. This decision follows a long and difficult legal struggle for the family of Joy Osundeko, who required round-the-clock care for Down’s syndrome and other serious medical conditions at her home in St Helens, Merseyside.

As reported by LADbible, the incident occurred on 15 February 2022. Mayo, Joy’s father, had spent the night caring for her before two carers arrived at the home at around 8:00 AM. About an hour later, Joy’s mother, Bisi, entered the bedroom and discovered that something was clearly wrong. Mayo rushed downstairs to find his daughter in a terrifying state.

“I grabbed the bag, removed the ventilator from the trachea, and manually provided oxygen to Joy myself,” Mayo recalled. He described the harrowing moments that followed, noting that the nurse moved out of the way while he attempted to help his daughter. “I kept providing oxygen, but Joy was like a baby doll. I was screaming her name. It took almost a minute before Joy started breathing again.”

The ventilator was reportedly switched off for around six minutes 

While the nurse initially claimed that the machine had been turned off for only a few seconds, the family later reviewed CCTV footage that told a much different story. The video reportedly showed the carer pressing and holding a button twice before tapping the screen as the machine made a sound and shut down. Mayo explained that viewing the footage was a distressing experience because it revealed that the ventilator had been switched off for close to six minutes.

Following this incident, Joy spent nine days at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital. Her parents noticed a sharp decline in her condition after she returned home. Mayo noted that Joy’s health deteriorated dramatically, stating, “Joy always liked throwing her hands and legs up in the air but her hands and legs, in particular her right leg, was not moving as much as it had done previously.” 

Her parents also observed that her body changed, her general health worsened, and she stopped smiling. Joy eventually died on 13 June 2022 after suffering a stroke that resulted in brainstem death.

The family pursued legal action against Optima Health and Social Care Ltd, the agency that employed the nurse. The company admitted to breaching its duty of care regarding the ventilator incident but denied that this specific event caused Joy any injury or contributed to her eventual death. 

While the company reportedly reached an out-of-court damages settlement with the family, the path to accountability has been frustrating. The family’s request for an inquest was rejected, and the Nursing and Midwifery Council is currently conducting its own investigation into what occurred.

Solicitor Maria Repanos, who represents the family, stated, “Joy’s parents have understandably been left absolutely devastated and today, more than four years on, they still have no explanation as to how and why this happened.” Bisi described the loss of her daughter as an unbearable pain and expressed a feeling of being completely failed by the system. 

The parents maintain that they deserve answers. “We have never received any form of explanation from the nurse as to how she could possibly have made such a serious mistake,” Bisi added. “An explanation is the least we are owed.”