The former chief nurse at Mater Dei Hospital was suspended from his duties after the police took criminal action over alleged sexual harassment at his workplace, The Sunday Times of Malta can reveal.
Mario Ellul, 47, is facing criminal charges over sexually explicit messages he sent to one of his subordinates in 2015, when he was chief nursing manager at Mater Dei.
However, the allegations only reached the hospital management in the middle of last year. The victim did not want to file a formal complaint against Mr Ellul at the time but simply wanted him transferred from the place where she worked, a source said.
The hospital management then set up an internal board of inquiry and the claims against the chief nurse were investigated.
The alleged victim, seemingly unsatisfied with the little action taken, reported him for sexual harassment
In July 2016, Mr Ellul was transferred to a similar position out of the hospital, as chief nursing manager in the Primary Health Care Department, managing health centre nurses. There was some musical chairs involved to accommodate this: his predecessor became chief nurse at the Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre, while the chief there was moved to Mr Ellul’s previous position as chief nurse at Mater Dei.
The alleged victim, seemingly unsatisfied with the little action taken against Mr Ellul, reported him to the police for sexual harassment. Sources said he is also facing stalking charges. The police filed criminal charges against Mr Ellul in court and the criminal case is currently under way.
The health authorities referred the case to the Public Service Commission, which recently suspended Mr Ellul until the case is decided, as happens in all cases of civil servants facing criminal proceedings. When questioned about the matter, a Health Ministry spokeswoman said Mater Dei Hospital management followed established procedure and took action according to PSC rules.
“At the point when Mater Dei investigated the claims, the employee making the claims did not wish to testify.
“Once the police were informed and the case was taken to court, the person accused was suspended immediately, again in line with PSC regulations. The case is sub judice and should not be prejudiced by further comments,” she said.
matthew.xuereb@timesofmalta.com