This article contains allegations and descriptions of child abuse that may be disturbing to some readers.
Nurses and doctors are often viewed as lifesaving professionals, but this case raises concerns about the trust placed in caregivers. A Pennsylvania nurse is accused of abusing a 3-year-old child in her care, including allegedly slamming the child and delaying the reinsertion of a breathing tube while the child struggled to breathe, according to court filings.
“This was the most disturbing one. Thank God my daughter is so strong,” the mother told Law&Crime. “It was just horrific. I just couldn’t believe it. It’s almost like monsters come out at night,” she added.
Cindy Desser, 58, who worked as an overnight nurse for the child at her family’s home in Bensalem, a suburb of Philadelphia, reportedly had a history of mistreating younger patients. The allegations surfaced after the child’s parents filed a negligence lawsuit against the nurse.
Desser has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child, according to the Bensalem Police Department. The couple’s daughter, identified in court filings as Z.N., was born in October 2023 at a children’s hospital with serious medical complications, including missing ribs, abdominal muscles and a lung.
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The child underwent multiple surgeries and remained in the hospital for several months before requiring constant care.
Desser was hired as a caregiver to look after the medically fragile child, who depended on a ventilator at home. The child’s mother initially noticed a bruise near her thigh while changing her diaper and took her to a doctor, who said it could have been caused by a thumbprint. Surveillance footage later allegedly showed Desser striking the child and handling her in a negligent manner.
According to the lawsuit, the parents alleged that the nurse forcefully slammed the toddler into her crib, causing the tracheostomy tube to become dislodged. Desser was also described in the lawsuit as aggressive and careless, allegedly sleeping during work hours and failing to respond to the child’s medical needs.
In one instance cited in the lawsuit, the child’s oxygen levels dropped dangerously low while Desser was allegedly asleep wearing headphones, prompting the mother to intervene. According to The Mirror US, the lawsuit also claims Desser had a history of poor conduct with previous employers, who allegedly dismissed her under negative circumstances.
Despite this, she was later hired again and is accused of continuing similar behavior.
In another alleged incident, Desser was accused of securing a new job while out on bail in a separate case and abusing another medically fragile child. The child’s parents, who remain anonymous, said they chose Desser because of her more than 20 years of experience and prior work with a child who had a similar lung condition. They allege that her actions not only traumatized the family but also violated workplace policies of the home health care provider.
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Z.N.’s father described the situation as a “nightmare” and spoke about the distress of watching surveillance footage of his child struggling to breathe after the tube became dislodged.
“All our little girl did was sit up and look at her for a minute, and she got shoved to the ground. It’s really sick and horrible,” he told the media. “A snake can shed its skin so many times, and it’s still a snake. So, you gotta watch out.” He said he hopes for justice and that the nurse’s license should be revoked.
According to WPVI, Desser has been terminated from Dynamic Home Health Care and is being held at the Bucks County Jail on $2 million bail. Her next court appearance is scheduled for April 7.
