- Andrew Earl was emergency department nurse at Calvary Hospital in Canberra
- He took his own life at home in in June after being unhappy at work for a year
- A friend said that one colleague constantly criticised and questioned his work
- Mr Earl, who was a nurse from 2009, was described as a ‘gentle, giving person’
A male nurse committed suicide after a year of relentless bullying at work, his colleagues have claimed.
Andrew Earl, who was an emergency department nurse at Calvary Hospital in Canberra, New South Wales, was found dead at his home in June.
A coroner ruled there was not enough evidence to say his death was solely caused by bullying but friends say he was ‘worn down’ by a psychological campaign against him.
Tragic: Andrew Earl (pictured), who was an emergency department nurse at Calvary Hospital in New South Wales, was found dead at his home in Canberra in June
A coroner ruled there was not enough evidence to say that Mr Earl’s death was solely caused by bullying but friends say he was ‘worn down’ by a relentless campaign
‘He experienced psychological bullying. Over time it wore him down until he was mentally and emotionally exhausted,’ a friend told The Sunday Canberra Times.
The friend claimed that one colleague constantly criticised and questioned his work.
She said: ‘The colleague made changes to his work so it appeared to the rest of his team that he’d completed his work incompetently. Over nine to 12 months, it wore him down until he was mentally and emotionally exhausted.’
‘He felt belittled and also ashamed that he couldn’t cope with it,’ she added.
The friend said that Mr Earl wanted to report the bullying so it never happened to anyone else but feared being labelled unfit for practice.
Mr Earl, who had been a nurse since 2009, was described as a ‘gentle, giving person’.
He loved swing dancing, cooking, breeding Japanese spitz dogs and playing scrabble online.
The ACT Health Services Commissioner is investigating Mr Earl’s death.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the hospital for comment.
- For confidential support call the Lifeline 24-hour crisis support on 13 11 14
The friend explained that one colleague at Calvary Hospital (pictured) constantly criticised and questioned his work.