A NURSE who stole drugs from a hospital and jewellery from her former sister-in-law’s home has been thrown out of the profession.

Sarah McQuistan took lorazepam from the emergency ward at Furness General Hospital while employed there in March 2014.

The nurse also received a caution for stealing more than £500-worth of jewellery from the home of her former sister-in-law and selling some of it on more than six months later.

A Nursing and Midwifery Council panel has now decided that as a result of McQuistan’s actions and their dishonest nature she should be struck off the medical register.

In March 2014 an investigation was launched at the hospital due to a the large amount of drugs vanishing.

The investigating officer found most of it went missing while McQuistan was on duty.

McQuistan admitted in an interview soon after that she had stolen seven lorazepam tablets from the hospital’s emergency ward.

The nurse acknowledged she had taken advantage of problems with the hospital’s medication monitoring system for her own personal gain.

Later the same year McQuistan was caught stealing again, this time from the home of her former sister-in-law.

As a result of these incidents and McQuistan’s dishonesty the NMC panel found the only appropriate response would be to ban the nurse from the profession.

McQuistan admitted she was “disgusted” by her own behaviour and was tearful upon hearing the panel’s final decision.

Hilary Nightingale, chairman of the NMC panel, said: “The panel did not find your evidence entirely consistent or credible.

“Your actions involved dishonesty both inside and outside the workplace.

“The panel has found that there is a risk of repetition of your misconduct.”