A NURSE whose efforts throughout the coronavirus crisis saw her dubbed ‘the Angel of the North’ said she has been dismayed by an investigation she claims is unjustified.

Mother-of-two Leona Harris, 48, first rose to national prominence after leading a campaign to secure iPads for hospital patients who were forced to isolate due to the pandemic and were unable to see their relatives.

Her efforts saw Mrs Harris honoured by patients and national figures alike, however she was shocked to find she has been referred by East Lancashire NHS Hospitals Trust to the Nursing and Midwifery Council for investigation for an incident in which she potentially saved a patient’s life but in which the relevant paperwork had been inadvertently overlooked.

Rossendale-born Mrs Harris said: “I was moving on with my life and I was doing my own thing and then they’ve done this to me, like they’re trying to destroy me."

She added: “They’ve put me through the most unjust, horrific process.

“I’m seriously considering my future now because I don’t want this to keep impacting on my family.”

The incident occurred in 2017, however the referral from the trust to the Nursing and Midwifery Council was only made this year, with Mrs Harris herself only informed this autumn, after she had already been working as an agency nurse throughout the coronavirus crisis.

Husband Nick said: “She’s got a 24-year unblemished career in nursing and for this to come off the back of everything she’s done, it's ridiculous.”

Mrs Harris has succeeded in raising over £70,000 and donated to over 50 hospitals over the course of this year and has been honoured several times, including with a feature in BBC Breakfast and Football Focus presenter Dan Walker’s new book Remarkable People.

She was also shortlisted for the Florence Nightingale Nurse of the Year Award and selected to take part in the Blackpool Illuminations virtual switch on.

Mrs Harris, a Covid-19 frontline nurse at Fairfield General Hospital in Bury, says she has been heartened with messages of support from family, friends, patients and fellow professionals.

East Lancashire NHS Hospitals Trust have said they cannot comment on individual cases and that the matter now rests with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.