Fake nurse, 21, arrested after impersonating medical staff, roaming hospital wards undetected

Malawi Police in Liwonde, Machinga district, have arrested a 21-year-old woman after she allegedly disguised herself as a nurse and posed as medical staff at Machinga District Hospital.

Tiyamike Mkandawire was taken into custody after hospital officials grew suspicious of the woman, who was found wearing a nurse’s uniform and moving freely around the hospital premises.

According to Liwonde Police spokesperson Ngwashape Msume, the incident unfolded on 10 August 2026, when hospital staff spotted Mkandawire dressed as one of their own colleagues, wandering around the facility.

When questioned by hospital officials about her presence, Mkandawire reportedly claimed she was one of several students who had come to the hospital to undertake work-based training.

However, hospital authorities grew increasingly suspicious and launched their own inquiries, quickly discovering that her claims were entirely false. Officials subsequently alerted police, who arrived at the scene and arrested Mkandawire.

Mkandawire hails from Malongo Village, under Traditional Authority Chilumba in Karonga district.

The incident raises troubling questions over hospital security protocols, given the potential risks posed by unauthorised individuals gaining access to sensitive medical environments while posing as trained healthcare professionals – a scenario campaigners are likely to argue could have had far more serious consequences had the impersonation gone undetected for longer.