A care home nurse has been struck off after claiming a resident with dementia did not need a cake because they would not be aware it was their birthday.

Rossitsa Petkova was found guilty of misconduct by a Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Panel, and banned her from the profession.

The incident took place at Castleford House Nursing Home in Tutshill, Gloucestershire, close to the border with Wales, where she had worked as a registered nurse for more than a decade.

Petkova had denied several allegations, relating to incidents that took place between January and October 2023 at the nursing home.

The panel found a total of eight allegations proven, including the comment about the birthday cake, and also found Petkova had shouted at residents to "shut up".

The panel said the patients at the care home were elderly and vulnerable.

They found Petkova's actions were "significant departures from the standards expected of a registered nurse," and were "fundamentally incompatible with her remaining on the register."

Melanie Corfield, a kitchen assistant at the care home, gave a statement to the panel about a conversation with Petkova about the birthday cake.

"He [the resident] was in bed, so I asked Rossi what she would like me to do with the cake," she said.

"She told me that I have to remember he doesn't have capacity, that he wouldn't even know it was his birthday and to pretty much not make a big thing of it.

"I replied, 'It's not the fact that he hasn't got capacity, this is his birthday. And to me, everybody deserves a birthday, dementia or not, so we will get one of the girls to take it up' and Rossi said, 'Or if not, we can eat the cake'."

Petkova denied making the comments and suggested colleagues had made "pointless and childish complaints" about her.

The panel also found Petkova told one resident that if they did not eat their dinner, their daughter would not be able to visit them.

Petkova denied all the allegations that took place between January and October 2023 at the nursing home.

In its judgement, the panel said Petkova had displayed a "reprehensible and dismissive attitude" towards the NMC, and had attempted to place the blame on others.

They said Petkova had shown a "deep-seated attitude that is entrenched and therefore more difficult to remediate" and had provided no evidence of insight, remorse or strengthening of practice.

Their final decision was that her "abuse and wide-ranging disregard for the wellbeing of vulnerable patients in her care" meant she had to be banned for the safety of the public.

Petkova can submit an appeal against the decision to strike her off.

Follow BBC Gloucestershire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.