A GIGGLING Merseyside doctor inhaled gas and air while on duty on a children’s A&E ward and told nurses it was "fun" and created a "floaty" sensation, a disciplinary panel heard.

Dr Jonathan Chahal admitted using the medical anaesthetic Entonox from a gas canister on four separate occasions at Ormskirk District General Hospital.

The senior house officer paediatrician also persuaded four female nurses to inhale the gas which is frequently administered in childbirth to alleviate pain.

On one occasion nursing staff heard the sound of giggling from the department’s resuscitation room and found Dr Chahal inhaling the substance, a General Medical Council Fitness to Practise Panel heard.

GMC counsel Craig Sephton QC said: "He asked if they had ever tried it. He said it was fun and made you feel floaty."

Mr Sephton said evidence would be presented which indicated Entonox should only be used in medical situations and its manufacturers advised that people should not use machinery for at least 12 hours after taking it.