Police allege former Gold Coast nurse preyed on hospital patients

Derek Jackson was a nurse on the children’s ward of the Gold Coast University Hospital.

His job was to care for his young patients and help them heal.

Instead he’s accused of preying on six girls over a four-year period. And now, for the first time, families and patients are speaking out and want answers.

One of those patients is Sarah*.

For legal reasons, A Current Affair, can’t reveal her real name, but as a teenager, she was in and out of hospital receiving treatment for an eating disorder.

That’s when she says she met Jackson.

“Right at the beginning when I was first ever admitted, that was the first time I met him,” Sarah told A Current Affair.

“And the more I was there, the more he would come. The more he would be there,” she said.

Sarah alleges Jackson touched her on the leg, and she felt uncomfortable.

“When you’re in that position you don’t know what to do,” she said.

“You don’t know what you can say either - you can always tell someone to leave your room but when you’re so unwell and they’re kind of in charge of your care.”

Sarah recounted how she claims to have handled those situations.

“I would never speak up to him, only except ‘get out’,” she said,

“And then a couple of times I did say to nurses … or other psychiatry teams, I do not want him in here.”

Jackson is facing twelve charges against six patients - including allegations of stalking, sexual assault and exposing a child to an indecent image.

Police allege Jackson would loiter in the rooms of his patients and favoured spending time with young slender girls.

He was arrested at Brisbane International Airport on June 13.

Police say he was flying to China and hadn’t booked a return flight. His lawyer indicated he was going on holiday.

“Obviously it’s deeply concerning that people are having contact with children, especially highly vulnerable people,” Gold Coast Detective Inspector Paul Fletcher said at the time of the arrest.

“When these allegations came to light they were vigorously investigated straight away,” he said.

Another person alleged to be a victim of Derek Jackson was Giaan Ramsay.

The 17-year-old took her own life last year, after a prolonged battle with depression and eating disorders.

“Giaan was in there, she’s fighting for her life. She’s literally fighting for her life, trying to overcome a disease that is so debilitating, so all-consuming, every ounce of energy goes into just surviving another day,” Giaan’s father Steve told A Current Affair.

Like Sarah, Giaan came to be under Jackson’s care while he was her mental health nurse.

But with Giaan under an involuntary order, Steve and Lizel had no say over how their daughter was treated and who looked after her.

“Giaan often said ‘mum really, he was here three times today’, and I’m going ‘I’m so sorry’,” Lizel said.

Giaan’s parents asked for Jackson to be removed from her care team, specifically because she had experienced unrelated past sexual trauma, and didn’t want a male nurse.

“That is the one place where you believe someone to be safe. And that is why I am so strongly opinionated about the treatment authority and how easily that is issued. And once it’s issued you lose all power,” Steve said.

Sarah, Steve and Lizel aren’t the only ones involved in police allegations against Jackson.

A Current Affair spoke to a mother whose daughter was also in Jackson’s care.

“My daughter didn’t feel safe,” she claimed.

The mother alleges her daughter and another patient were so concerned by Jackson’s behaviour they started keeping records of their interactions with him.

“They took on the job of the people that were paid to keep them safe,” she said.

“They took it into their own hands …and they shouldn’t have had to do that.”

Gold Coast Health Services issued a statement to A Current Affair regarding action taken during Jackson’s employment.

“Between 2020 and 2024, concerns were raised regarding aspects of Mr Jackson’s professional performance, including his bedside manner and provision of inconsistent medical and dietary advice,” it said.

“These matters were addressed through normal supervisory processes.

“Importantly, the matters raised between 2020 and 2024 were limited to clinical and professional performance-related issues.”

“The current charges against Mr Jackson could not reasonably be inferred from the issues reported in that period.”

“Allegations of indecent treatment of children between 2020 and 2024 were not reported to Gold Coast Health until August 2025, initially verbally and then with more supporting evidence in mid-September.

“Gold Coast Health interviewed a key witness on 22 September and notified Queensland Police Service on 23 September.

“On police advice, Mr Jackson was not stood down until four days later, to allow undisturbed gathering of evidence.

“Mr Jackson was removed from the workplace on 27 September 2025.”

Meanwhile, Steve and Lizel Ramsay are preparing for the first anniversary of Giaan’s death.

They say these allegations should prompt a system-wide review of Gold Coast health.

Like Sarah, they’re encouraging any other patients and families, with concerns about their treatment in the health system to speak up.

“Do not be afraid to use your voice, and if you find that your voice is not being heard by a particular someone, then find someone else, but don’t keep it to yourself. Speak up,” they said.