Donna Jane Murray (35) said the victim was her favourite nurse on Ward 9B — a locked ward for mental health patients — and was immediately apologetic after the attack, counsel Brendan Stephenson said in the Dunedin District Court on Thursday.
Murray was found guilty of assault with a weapon, and an unrelated matter of threatening to kill, after a judge-alone trial in January.
The Southern District Health Board said the incident had led to a review of the protocols for searching incoming patients and property.
Mr Stephenson said Murray was "unhappy with the circumstances" at the hospital, so she put paper on the windows of the seclusion room to stop the staff from seeing inside.
About 7am on May 3, four nurses went to enter Murray’s room, unsure of what they might find.
"Somehow, we ended up on the floor," nurse Donna Fitzsimmons testified at the trial.
"It happened pretty quickly."
Murray ended up face down with Ms Fitzsimmons on her left arm and another nurse, Catherine Douglas, on her right.
"First time I was made aware of it was the needle going into my thigh," Ms Douglas said of the incident.
It was "just like getting an injection", she said.
Mr Stephenson said Murray suffered from mental health issues, and "wasn’t in the best frame of mind" at the time of the assault.
Judge Jim Large acknowledged these difficulties contributed to both offences Murray committed.
"Mental health workers have enough trouble and difficulties to deal with in their life than being assaulted by their patients," Judge Large said.
"They’re there to help you".
Murray admitted to sneaking the needle she bought from eBay into the hospital, but the nurses were unaware of its presence.
This assault has only added to the woes of Wakari Hospital, which has been repeatedly criticised in reports.
One revealed "the majority of the mental health facilities located on the Wakari site in Dunedin are in a poor state and not fit for purpose".
Ward 9B was one of the many that required "urgent attention".
Murray was sentenced to 12 months’ intensive supervision, during which she is to attend any counselling services deemed appropriate by Probation.
A protection order was also ordered in favour of the man she threatened to kill.
