A male nurse found to have drugged a woman’s tea with a cannabinoid at a Byron Bay backpackers hostel has expressed remorse after being barred from practising for two years.
Former registered nurse Euihyuk Byun received the ban from the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) on June 18.
The ruling followed proceedings launched against him by the Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) on March 4, 2024.
The tribunal was told that on the night of December 15, 2022, Byun encountered an unnamed woman while both were guests at The Surf House, a backpacker hostel in Byron Bay.
After the woman said she was unwell, Byun told her he was a nurse and checked her throat, according to evidence before the tribunal.
Byun, who was born in South Korea and later moved to Australia to work in nursing, advised the woman to take vitamins and paracetamol before preparing her a cup of tea, which he claimed contained honey.
But the tea had been mixed with THC, the mind-altering compound found in cannabis.
NCAT heard that Byun, who was first registered as a nurse in 2014, was aware he had added THC to the drink but failed to disclose that to the woman before giving it to her.
Euihyuk Byun has been banned from nursing for two years by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal
‘About 11.30pm, [the woman woke up] with her heart racing, confused and she felt high,’ the tribunal decision noted.
The woman walked to the hostel reception looking distressed and told a staff member she had woken up with a fast heart beat and ‘felt anxious and was very worried’.
While she was asking hostel staff for help, Byun said the drink contained only honey but later admitted he had added THC, the tribunal heard.
The woman was taken by ambulance to Byron Bay Hospital where tests confirmed she had THC in her system and she said she felt ‘creeped out’, the tribunal heard.
The next day, she reported the matter to police.
Byun was charged in 2024 with giving a person a drink containing an intoxicating substance with intent to cause harm. He later pleaded guilty and was convicted.
He was directed to enter into a Community Correction Order for two years and fined $1,500.
Byun told the tribunal he first tried cannabis in 2012 and that from 2016 his use had escalated to three times per week, which is when it ‘became problematic’.
While staying at The Surf House in Byron Bay, Byun spiked a woman’s tea with THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis
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‘At the time of the offence, my judgment was severely impaired by my own cannabis use,’ Byun told the tribunal in a reflective statement.
‘I developed cannabis use disorder rooted in unresolved childhood trauma, neglect, and a profound sense of family betrayal experienced in South Korea.
‘Cannabis became my primary coping mechanism for managing emotional distress that had gone untreated for most of my adult life.’
It was also alleged that on July 3, 2023, Byun made false and misleading statements to the Nursing and Midwifery Council of NSW by saying he had never used illicit drugs.
‘I made statements to the effect that I did not take illicit drugs and had never taken illicit drugs,’ he told the tribunal.
‘Those statements were not accurate, and I acknowledge that fully.’
Byun said he did not intend to deceive the council but did so because he ‘had not yet found the clinical support that would allow [him] to face it at all’, the tribunal heard.
In its decision, the tribunal found Byun had breached the trust placed in him as a registered nurse by administering an intoxicating substance without the woman’s knowledge or consent.
Byun told the woman her tea contained only honey (file image)
The tribunal disqualified Byun from being registered in nursing for two years and imposed an order forbidding him from providing any health services for the same period.
‘I am deeply sorry for the harm I caused [the woman],’ Byun said.
‘I am sorry for the damage I caused to the nursing profession and to the public’s trust in it.’
The tribunal also ruled that, had Byun remained registered, it would have cancelled his registration. He was ordered to pay the HCCC’s costs as agreed or assessed under legislation.
When contacted by the Daily Mail Australia for comment on the NCAT ruling, Byun apologised and said that, if he could, he would ‘turn back time’.
‘I sincerely apologise for what I did. I take full responsibility for it,’ he said in a message on Friday night.
‘I would not be able to fully understand how much I made the public feel betrayed, angry, upset, outraged and worried about their own safety and their family’s safety.
‘As a nurse who is trusted by the public, I should have known better and should never have done what I did. As an immigrant, I should have been a good member of society who provides good values to the society.
‘I think about it every day and regret it every day. If I could, I would like to turn back time and not do it. I am sincerely sorry again for what I did.’
Byun said he is trying his best to be a good member of society and is looking for volunteering jobs.
The Daily Mail contacted The Surf House for comment.
