A former Gold Coast nurse has walked away with 12 months' probation after pleading guilty to stealing a patient's bank card and using it to pay for a hair appointment.

Southport Magistrates Court heard Melelani Crelley's victim was a 78-year-old woman in an induced coma in Robina Hospital's intensive care unit.

Ms Crelley was working at Robina Hospital at the time.

The victim's purse was in a locked box next to her hospital bed, which would've required a hospital staff member with the key to unlock it, the court heard.

On May 31 last year, the victim woke from her coma and discovered her purse was gone.

Ms Crelley told police she found the purse at the front of the hospital and intended to hand it in.

But she used the victim's bank card to pay for a hair appointment in Varsity Lakes

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