A CARE home nurse has been suspended from the profession after giving whisky to elderly residents – including recovering alcoholics.

Heather Susan Thompson gave the drinks to nursing home residents in a bid to "quieten them down".

But one elderly woman spat the whisky out, saying it was "too strong" and others became aggressive.

The nurse was also found to have hurled abuse at an elderly man who had wet himself, a Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) hearing found.

Ms Thompson was sacked from her job at the Bupa-run Hill View Care Home in Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire.

The NMC panel found 14 charges of misconduct against her proved, including that she gave alcohol to five residents at the home in June 2010. Two were suffering from Korsakoff's syndrome, a brain disorder caused by alcohol abuse.

Ms Thompson was not present and not represented at the hearing in Edinburgh, but the panel saw a letter she wrote to the NMC, saying she was "disgusted by the lack of evidence, and wild misinterpretations posed by the accusers".

During an internal disciplinary hearing, Ms Thompson accused a colleague who raised the issue of "assert[ing] her pecking-order position".

The NMC panel found 14 charges of misconduct against Ms Thompson proved, and said she had put residents at risk of harm. However, it decided not to ban her from the profession, opting instead for a year's suspension.