A security guard at a Canterbury hospital kicked a vulnerable dementia patient after losing his temper.

But Austin Eboh, who worked for Rightguard Security, escaped an immediate jail sentence after a judge heard he had received no specialist training.

Canterbury Crown Court heard how other patients witnessed the incident at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital.

Eboh, from Quartz Way, Sittingbourne, told the court: “The day in question was only my second night working with a patient. I had been given no training in dealing with patients generally, let alone difficult patients.

“My understanding of the job was to prevent this man from using violence against staff and other patients.”

After the attack, NHS bosses and the security firm introduced new training measures, the court heard.

Eboh, 27, who was later sacked, pleaded guilty to assaulting the man, who can’t be named for legal reasons.

A second charge of ill-treatment, which the ex-guard denied, was left on file.

The incident took place in November 2013 when the patient was assigned security staff because of the threat he posed to other patients and staff.

Eboh was on duty and was seen by another patient to kick out – leaving his victim with a cut to his ankle and psychological damage.

The guard said later: “On the night in question, this patient was being particularly violent and aggressive.

“During my shift he attempted to bite me, spit at me, kick me, throw pillows and bed sheets at me and twist my arm. I had to visit the minor injuries unit for an injury caused to my wrist the following day.

"I accept that in the course of my shift, I suffered a momentary loss of temper," he added.

His barrister Kieran Brand said Eboh had come from Nigeria in 2010 and has since married a pharmacist and became a father a few months ago.

His plans had been to become an IT expert and join the army and he had taken the security job to earn some money.

“He did abuse his position of trust but he had received no training whatsoever to deal with that sort of situation. He simply wasn’t qualified.”

Mr Brand added the guard didn’t asked for help from his bosses because he feared he would lose his job.

But Judge Simon James, in passing a nine-month sentence suspended for 18 months, told him: “It is clear you were unprepared and untrained for the difficult role you were entrusted with.

“Dealing with people with serious mental health issues requires compassion, patience and understanding.

“Clearly you had none of those characteristics.”

The judge added the guard had been warned about the inappropriateness of his conduct prior to the attack but had persisted in using physical force.

Eboh was ordered to do 120 hours of unpaid work for the community.