A teenage mum who posed as a doctor in a white lab coat, and administered an unknown substance to a patient, was spared jail.
The then-19 year old from Hanwell West London, Kreuena Zdrafkova, arrived at Ealing Hospital wearing a white coat, stethoscope, medical gloves and a yellow badge last April.
Zdrafkova was subsequently arrested and pleaded guilty to common assault through a Turkish interpreter. She was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court.
The judge gave her a one-year community order banning her from entering any NHS facility without an appointment except in an emergency.
The sentencing and the judge’s decision not to impose a custodial sentence was mainly due to the fact that the patient didn’t react adversely, if at all, to the injection.
The patient was a prisoner in police custody who was guarded by two police officers when Zdrafkova introduced herself as ‘Dr Christina’ wearing blue medical gloves to greet the officers and administer the mysterious substance to the unconscious patient shortly afterwards.
She then proceeded to take photographs of the prisoner patient’s neck and hands.
She was later spotted examining butterfly needles in the blood room, directing the paramedics and helping herself into the ambulance.
It was argued that Zdrafkova acted without malice and was simply living out her lifelong ambition.
She was in possession of private medical papers at the time of her arrest when she returned to hospital duties three days after her debut doctor’s outing.
Zdrafkova’s dream of becoming a doctor was put on hold when she gave birth to her twins boys at 14 which halted her schooling and education.
Defending barrister, Harry Stallard, remarked that she had acted compassionately and that this in itself was evidence of her good character.
He also mentioned that Zdrafkova was a child bride having married at 14.
Zdrafkova’s age, and lack of convictions, as well as the fact that she had already spent 35 days in custody pre-sentencing were all mitigating factors, but her motive of living out a ‘doctor’s fantasy’ was rejected as a mitigating factor by Judge Fiona Barrie.
Judge Barrie expressed concern that, Zdrafkova, despite having no medical training and qualifications, was afforded access to private patient wards with few questions asked.
She was able to convince NHS staff of her ‘doctor’ status without having to show ID which could call for a wider investigation into the overall state of hospitals and NHS trusts sometime in the future.
London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust said: “We fully supported the police investigation into this highly unusual incident, taking immediate action to support the apprehension of the individual and enhance our security measures.”
Image credit: Unsplash
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