Fitness to Practise Cases
This archive contains General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) Fitness to Practise (FtP) case summaries, detailing regulatory decisions affecting pharmacy professionals in the UK.
Each case provides insight into professional misconduct, errors, and ethical breaches that led to sanctions such as suspension, removal, or warnings. These summaries are valuable for:
- Pharmacists & Pharmacy Technicians – to understand common regulatory pitfalls.
- Employers & HR Teams – to learn about professional accountability and compliance.
- Pharmacy Students – to prepare for real-world ethical challenges in pharmacy practice.
Why it matters:
The decisions in these cases shape the legal and ethical landscape of pharmacy practice. Staying informed can help pharmacy professionals avoid similar mistakes and maintain high professional standards.
Use the form below to search for and filter cases that match your interests
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Warning Issued for Inappropriate Prescribing of Propranolol via Online Platform Leading to Patient Death
Allegations This case centers on an incident involving the registrant, a Pharmacist Independent Prescriber employed by the Independent Pharmacy, a digital health platform supplying prescription-only medications. The pharmacy dispenses a range of medications, including high-risk drugs such as propranolol, and operates under strict clinical protocols requiring Summary Care Record (SCR) checks for certain prescriptions, particularly […]
10 June 2025
Pharmacist Suspended for Convictions Related to Controlled Drugs
Allegations The registrant, a pharmacist, was convicted on 30 November 2016 of several offences under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Specifically, the convictions included possession with intent to supply Class C controlled substances—Tramadol, Zolpidem, and Zopiclone—as well as simple possession of Lorazepam. These charges arose from the registrant’s personal conduct and directly implicated her […]
Boots Pharmacist Suspended for Repeated Theft and Unlawful Supply of Prescription Medicines
Allegations The case involved a pharmacist who, over an extended period, engaged in multiple acts of dishonesty and professional misconduct. The registrant was alleged to have stolen a variety of medical supplies and prescription-only medicines from his place of employment without valid prescriptions or any appropriate documentation. Items taken included both over-the-counter goods (such as […]
9 June 2025
Pharmacist Removed from GPhC Register Following Conviction for Making Indecent Images of Children
Allegations The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) Fitness to Practise Committee convened a hearing to assess the fitness to practise of a registered pharmacist (hereafter referred to as “the registrant”) following a criminal conviction. The registrant had been convicted of three counts of making indecent images of children, contrary to section 1(1)(a) of the Protection of […]
8 June 2025
Pharmacist Removed from Register for Unsafe Storage and Intended Reuse of Out-of-Date Medicines
Allegations The case centred on the registrant, a superintendent pharmacist, who was found to have seriously breached professional and regulatory standards in her handling of pharmaceutical waste and expired medications. Over a period spanning July 2016 to March 2017, she was accused of: These actions, if proven, carried significant implications for public health, regulatory trust, […]
7 June 2025
Pharmacist Suspended for Assisting Suicide Using Stolen Medicines
This case involved a pharmacist who assisted the suicide of Mr A, a vulnerable individual experiencing profound loneliness and emotional distress. The registrant stole Oramorph (a Schedule 2 controlled drug) and insulin from the pharmacy, failing to record their removal, and administered them to Mr A in a premeditated act to help him end his […]
6 June 2025
Pharmacist Suspended for Inappropriate Access and Use of Colleague’s Medical Records
Allegations The pharmacist, while employed at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, accessed a junior colleague’s (Person A’s) confidential medical records for 17 minutes using the Evolve system without clinical need or consent. The registrant viewed sensitive documents and later used this information to ask inappropriate and personal questions, including querying “What is [PRIVATE]?” which was a […]
5 June 2025
Pharmacist Suspended for Forging Gas Safety Certificate in Private Property Sale
The registrant, while selling a business property (a pub), was required to provide a valid gas safety certificate. Instead of obtaining one: The engineer named was wrongly suspected and suspended from work before being cleared. “The registrant admitted producing a fraudulent document, namely the gas safety record.” The registrant pleaded guilty in court and was […]
22 May 2025
Pharmacist Warned for Failing to Safeguard High-Risk Medicines in Online Dispensing Scheme
The case concerns the registrant’s role as Responsible Pharmacist at a community pharmacy in June–August 2021. The owner of the pharmacy had entered into an agreement with a third-party online prescribing service. Between 16 June and 6 August 2021, the pharmacy dispensed over 380 prescriptions, all involving: The registrant: “This put patients at real risk […]
21 May 2025
Pharmacist Warned for Unsafe Partnership with Online Prescribing Service
The pharmacist, acting as owner and superintendent of a retail pharmacy, entered into an agreement in June 2021 with a third-party online prescribing company. This arrangement led the pharmacy to: He later admitted to GPhC inspectors that he was unaware of GPhC guidance on distance selling and had not ensured SOPs or risk protocols were […]