An aged care nurse who was supposed to be caring for vulnerable residents instead subjected six elderly people to a disturbing series of assaults, including punching, physical restraint and deliberately humiliating behaviour.
Phoebe Schwager, who also goes by the name Phoebe Allen, was working as an assistant in nursing at Uniting Garden Suburb in the Hunter when the assaults took place between October 2024 and February 2025.
The residents she targeted were living with conditions including Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and cognitive impairment, leaving them heavily dependent on staff for their daily care.
Newcastle District Court heard on Thursday that Schwager repeatedly abused that dependence, with prosecutors describing the offending as a serious breach of trust involving people who were often unable to understand, report or defend themselves.
Schwager, now 22, pleaded guilty earlier this year to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and several common assault charges. More serious charges of aggravated sexual touching were withdrawn as part of the resolution of the case.
The court heard the assaults were not limited to one resident or one incident.
One 75-year-old man with Alzheimer’s disease and post-traumatic stress disorder was repeatedly assaulted while receiving personal care. Schwager grabbed and squeezed his genitals while changing his incontinence pad, causing him to cry out in pain, and on other occasions punched him in the stomach.
She was also heard expressing frustration with the man, saying she hated him and could not cope with him.
In one incident, after punching him, Schwager reportedly worried that her engagement ring may have caused a bruise.
Another resident, an 81-year-old woman with Alzheimer’s disease, was left screaming after Schwager twisted her nipple and laughed.
An 89-year-old woman was also assaulted while she was being assisted with changing. The court heard Schwager used abusive language towards her before grabbing her forearm with enough force to tear her skin.
Some of the behaviour was particularly degrading.
An 82-year-old woman living with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and urinary incontinence had previously been known to become agitated and lash out at staff. Rather than responding to her behaviour through appropriate care, Schwager was accused of deliberately humiliating her.
She allegedly farted in the woman’s face and laughed before jumping onto her bed and using her knee to pin down the woman’s arm. On another occasion, she put a cleaning wipe into the woman’s mouth and told her to be quiet.
Another 82-year-old resident was being changed after spilling something on herself when Schwager allegedly put her buttocks near the woman’s face and farted.
A 93-year-old woman with cognitive impairment was also targeted. Staff had been advised to avoid strong language around her because it could increase her agitation, but the court heard Schwager grabbed the woman by the legs, threw her onto a bed, covered her head with the bedding and turned off the light.
She then reportedly told another staff member that the resident “does my head in”.
The court also heard Schwager assaulted two colleagues at the aged care facility. In one incident she struck a worker on the vagina over her clothing, while in another she kneed a colleague in the lower back while the woman was bent over.
Prosecutors argued the treatment of fellow workers was significant because Schwager’s behaviour appeared to have created pressure on colleagues not to challenge or report what was happening to residents.
When staff members objected to her conduct, she reportedly told them they were “no fun” and, in one instance, asked whether a colleague had seen anything.
Crown prosecutor Emily Winborne argued the assaults involved “gratuitous cruelty” and said Schwager had exploited residents who were particularly vulnerable.
“The degree of violence is not the primary factor in terms of the objective seriousness,” she told the court.
“It is the breach of trust, the vulnerability of these victims who cannot care for themselves, cannot speak out, cannot escape the violence, who are helpless and defenceless.”
The Crown sought a full-time prison sentence, arguing Schwager had shown little insight into her offending.
Judge Roy Ellis ultimately sentenced her to two years in prison but said a custodial sentence could have a substantially adverse impact on her mental health.
He said Schwager appeared to have been ill-equipped to deal with the demands of aged care and had responded to difficult residents by using violence against them.
The judge adjourned the matter until next month while Schwager is assessed for an intensive corrections order, home detention and community service.
For one family, the case has been particularly painful.
Barbara Berry’s identical twin sister, an 81-year-old woman living with Alzheimer’s disease, was among the residents assaulted.
Berry told the court she was shocked when she learned the extent of what had happened to her sister.
“These are people that can’t help themselves, can’t react, can’t do anything,” she said.
Berry said her sister had loved dancing and that the pair had shared many happy memories growing up together. She said it was devastating to see her twin’s health deteriorate and then learn she had been subjected to abuse while in care.
Berry said she hoped the case would remind people that elderly residents deserved to be treated with dignity, regardless of how difficult their care needs might become.
“She would not have been in that hospital if she didn’t have to be,” she said.
“I don’t want to have to go into care … nobody wants to go into aged care.”
The case is another stark reminder of the enormous responsibility placed on aged care workers, particularly those caring for people living with dementia.
Residents can be dependent on staff for the most intimate parts of their daily lives, often without having the ability to properly communicate when something has gone wrong.
In Schwager’s case, the court heard that trust was repeatedly violated by the very person who had been employed to provide their care.
