A NURSE who conned more than £10,000 out of the NHS by working 64 shifts at a private hospital while on sick leave, has been suspended from practising for six months.

Tendayi Nyamutambo, 35, of Shakespeare Drive, Westcliff, worked full time at the hospital in Norfolk, while on sick leave from Runwell Hospital, near Wickford.

Nyamutambo could have been struck off by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, but was allowed to return to work.

The panel heard she wasafulltime mental health nurse at Runwell, and, from September 2007, began occasional “bank” shifts in Norfolk, without declaring the second job.

She was found to have put patients at risk by not taking adequate breaks as she commuted between the back-to-back shifts.

Nyamutambo was signed off with depression in October 2007, but instead worked full time in Norfolk until February 2008, while on sick pay.

The panel’s report said: “Your actions were planned and deliberate. You have abused your position as a registered nurse and you breached the trust placed in you.

“You put patients at risk of harm and the consequences of your conduct could have been far more serious. However, you have begun to remedy your actions and would like the opportunity to return to nursing.”

Nyamutambo was brought before the panel after being found guilty of fraud in connection with the scam at Chelmsford Crown Court.

After being sacked from Runwell she was arrested and convicted in June 2010, receiving a community order for 12 months.