Conditions of practice order for pharmacist after dishonesty involving controlled drugs, falsified records and inappropriate co-codamol supply
Date of Decision: September 24, 2026
Registrant's Role: Pharmacist
Allegations:
- Intentionally removed approximately 10–15 packs of Codeine 30mg from the pharmacy between January 2022 and April 2023.
- Consumed some of the removed codeine while working as the Responsible Pharmacist and store manager.
- Accessed the pharmacy outside trading hours without authorisation and altered pharmacy records by adding staff initials without their permission.
- Acted dishonestly by removing medicines without paying for them and knowing he was not permitted to remove them.
- Acted dishonestly by altering records, knowing they were inaccurate, using colleagues’ initials without consent, and attempting to conceal the removal of medicines.
- Supplied excessive quantities of co-codamol to a patient despite concerns regarding legitimate clinical need and the potential for misuse or abuse.
- A further allegation was considered but was found not to amount to misconduct and was not pursued in the determination.
Outcome: Conditions of practice order for 6 months
Case Summary
Allegations
This case concerned a pharmacist who had worked for many years as a Responsible Pharmacist and store manager at a Boots pharmacy. The concerns arose after discrepancies were identified between controlled drug stock records and expected quantities of codeine held within the pharmacy.
The investigation identified a discrepancy involving thousands of codeine tablets. During the Fitness to Practise proceedings, however, the allegation was admitted on the basis that the registrant had removed approximately 10–15 packs of codeine 30mg, with packs containing either 28 or 100 tablets.
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- Full allegations considered by the GPhC/PSNI
- Panel findings and reasoning
- Outcome of the investigation
- Sanctions considered and imposed on the Pharmacist
- Key professional learning points
Original Case Document
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