Your guide to Pharmacy Law and Ethics
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:
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.
Date of Decision: April 11, 2019
Allegations: Misconduct involving violent behavior during a road rage incident. Criminal conviction for a public order offence. Failure to report the conviction to the General Pharmaceutical Council within the mandatory timeframe.
Outcome: Warning issued
Date of Decision: March 19, 2019
Allegations: Failed to report the accidental destruction of a box of 60 x 5mg Morphine Sulphate Tablets (MST) to the Superintendent Pharmacist. Failed to enter the receipt of a replacement box of MST into the controlled drug register. Engaged in dishonest conduct to conceal the destruction and create a false appearance of register accuracy. Made dishonest statements in July and August 2017 denying responsibility for the destruction and ordering of MST. Attempted to shift blame onto colleagues by suggesting they might have destroyed the MST.
Outcome: 3-month suspension from the register
Date of Decision: July 17, 2025
Allegations: Dispensing medicines from unregulated online prescribing services (UK Meds and Gender GP). Failure to ensure clinical appropriateness and patient monitoring. Lack of due diligence and risk assessments in working with third-party prescribing services. Failure to obtain sufficient information from prescribers or patients' GPs. Inadequate communication and coordination with patients' primary care providers.
Outcome: Warning issued, to be published on the GPhC register for 12 months.
Date of Decision: January 30, 2019
Allegations: Inappropriate supply of codeine linctus between January 2012 and May 2018. Supplied for unlicensed purposes. Supplied to patients in managed addiction programmes without consulting their prescriber. Failed to consider: Volume and frequency of purchases. Misuse or addiction potential. Possible codeine dependency. Adverse health and wellbeing effects.
Outcome: 12-month suspension from the Register
Date of Decision: July 16, 2025
Allegations: Fell asleep in the dispensary on the morning of 2 July 2022 while acting as Responsible Pharmacist. Fell asleep in the consultation room on the afternoon of 2 July 2022, leaving the pharmacy unattended and open to the public for over 20 minutes. Accessed Patient A's address between 2 July 2022 and 31 January 2023 and noted it outside clinical records. Attended Patient A’s home on 31 January 2023 and attempted to dissuade her from engaging with a GPhC investigation. Conduct in attending Patient A’s home with intent to dissuade her from cooperation with GPhC investigation demonstrated a lack of integrity.
Outcome: Suspension – one month
Date of Decision: June 14, 2019
Allegations: One registrant plagiarised coursework from another pharmacist during a Postgraduate Diploma course. The second registrant provided his coursework, knowing there was a risk it would be misused. Both pharmacists gave dishonest accounts to the university during its academic misconduct investigation.
Outcome: The pharmacist who committed plagiarism received a formal warning. The pharmacist who provided the plagiarised material faced no further action.
Date of Decision: May 9, 2019
Allegations: Sexually inappropriate touching of a female colleague, including pressing genitals against her, slapping her bottom, and stroking her leg Coercing a colleague to sit on his lap for help with coursework Invading the colleague’s personal space and making inappropriate comments Exploiting a position of professional power over a vulnerable employee Sexual motivation behind repeated boundary violations spanning multiple years
Outcome: Erasure from the GPhC register
Date of Decision: September 25, 2019
Allegations: Falsification of prescription signatures Dishonesty in professional conduct Conduct that placed patients at risk Conduct bringing the profession into disrepute
Outcome: Suspension order allowed to lapse; no current impairment found
Date of Decision: January 23, 2020
Allegations: Accessed medical records of multiple patients without clinical justification over several occasions. Accessed records of personal acquaintances including colleagues and their family members. Knew there was no clinical reason to access these records. Breached data protection and confidentiality standards in a healthcare setting.
Outcome: Suspension from the register for 3 months
Date of Decision: March 28, 2019
Allegations: The registrant provided a forged letter, purporting to be from the NHS, to a private Health Club in order to freeze his membership and suspend payment obligations. The act was dishonest, involving knowledge of the letter's falsehood and intent to gain personal financial benefit.
Outcome: Suspension lifted; fitness to practise no longer impaired