Nurse suspended after refusing to use pedophile’s preferred pronouns wins settlement
A 41-year-old NHS nurse from Croydon, Jennifer Melle, has won an out-of-court settlement after being labeled a “risk to the public.” A disciplinary action against her followed her refusal to use female pronouns for a patient at St Helier Hospital in Carshalton, Surrey, in May 2024.
The patient, a six-foot, bearded, convicted sex offender who identifies as transgender, subjected Melle to screaming racist abuse and threatened her with violence.
In March 2025, Melle was suspended from her role after sharing her experience publicly. NHS officials voiced concern that the patient’s identity could be revealed through media reports, despite the patient’s identity not being explicitly disclosed.
The single mother and nurse, suspended with pay for ten months after being reported to the professional regulator, was reinstated in February after a private disciplinary meeting cleared her of wrongdoing, prompted by public outcry. Her employer, Epsom and St. Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust, has now agreed to a settlement ahead of a tribunal, clearing her of any misconduct for speaking publicly.
Melle told the Daily Mail, “I cannot discuss the terms of the settlement, but generally I am glad that my employer has finally decided to extend an olive branch to me. I look forward to being able to focus on the job I love instead of defending myself against various bizarre accusations.”
The trust apologized for the nurse’s experience and confirmed it had issued a written warning to the patient, stating that racist language would not be tolerated.
A representative for Epsom and St. Helier Hospitals NHS Trust said, “Racial abuse of our staff is never acceptable, nor is discussing a patient’s private medical information publicly. We are sorry that Miss Melle had this experience, and we issued a written warning to this patient, but we expect all staff to maintain patient confidentiality at all times.”
Despite the settlement, Melle still faces two lengthy NMC investigations that could limit or end her nursing career.
Melle added, “It should never have come to this. No nurse or other medical professionals should ever have to face what I have faced simply for telling the truth, doing their job, and reporting racist abuse and physical threats from a patient.”
Melle’s legal battle, according to her, plunged her into the “darkest days of my life” over the past two years, and the ordeal is “still far from over.”
The incident began when Melle, a senior nurse from Uganda with a 12-year unblemished record at St Helier Hospital, was informed on the evening of May 22, 2024, about the admission of a large, six-foot-tall male sex offender transferred from a men’s prison, arriving in chains with two guards.
Around 10 pm, a junior colleague reported the patient was shouting, causing distress, and demanding self-discharge. As discharge guidance was pending from a doctor, Melle intervened.
Her review of the medical records showed the patient was male, not female or “transgender.” The name board next to the bed, however, displayed a female name.
After her colleague reached the doctor by phone, Melle requested to speak with him. She informed the doctor, “‘Mr X would like to self-discharge.’”
Hearing the phone call, the patient began screaming, “Do not call me Mr! I am a woman!” This outburst was followed by racist abuse directed at the nurse.
Melle, nevertheless, refused to use the patient’s preferred female pronouns, citing her Christian faith as the reason.
Andrea Williams, Chief Executive of the Christian Legal Centre, described the case as “one of the most concerning we have ever seen.” Williams highlighted the injustice, stating that Melle was “treated as the offender while the man, who racially abused and physically threatened her, was treated as the victim.”
A petition supporting Melle and calling for her exoneration reportedly gathered over 18,000 signatures earlier this year. Among her supporters was Shadow Equalities Minister Claire Coutinho, who described Melle as “one of the bravest women I have ever met.”
“Her case is proof of how the NHS has been captured by a radical gender ideology that puts women at the bottom of the pile,” she said.
She added, “In being punished for ‘misgendering’ a convicted paedophile, she has been repeatedly failed by her employers and trade unions. She is a dedicated nurse with 13 years of faultless service. The NHS should not be punishing hard-working nurses who know biological sex is real.”
Women and Equalities Minister Bridget Phillipson met with Melle after being pressured in the House of Commons, followed by a meeting with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch in March 2026. Phillipson later confirmed in Parliament that no NHS nurse should be compelled to use preferred pronouns.
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