The Society

Statutory Committee

Pharmacist’s drink problems lead to striking-off order
Reprimand for pharmacist who did not keep his Controlled Drugs register up to date

Pharmacist’s drink problems lead to striking-off order

A drink-driving conviction and attempting to practise while unfit to do so has led to the removal of a locum pharmacist’s name from the register by the Statutory Committee.

At is meeting on January 15, the committee inquired into the case of Brian Hope Robertson, of 4 Wansfell Avenue, Carlisle, Cumbria. Information had been received that at West Allerdale magistrates’ court on September 30, 1999, Mr Robertson had pleaded guilty to driving a car when he was over the prescribed limit for alcohol. He had been fined £300, ordered to pay £55 costs, and disqualified from driving for 27 months. That period was to have been reduced if Mr Robertson satisfactorily completed a drink-drive rehabilitation course. A complaint had also been received from the Council of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society alleging that while on duty as a locum on September 17, 1999, Mr Robertson’s condition had been such as to make him incapable of carrying out the professional duties of a pharmacist.

Geoff Hudson, of Penningtons (solicitors), appeared in order to place the facts of the case to the committee.

Ralph Shipway, of Le Brasseur J. Tickle (solicitors), represented Mr Robertson, who was present at the inquiry.

The committee heard that the drink-driving prosecution had followed an incident at a pharmacy in Maryport to which the police had been called. When they arrived at 1.20pm on September 19, they had found Mr Robertson being restrained by a doctor; he appeared to be inebriated. He had said he had driven from Carlisle that morning. The officers seized his car keys, in spite of Mr Robertson’s protest that he needed to be able to return to Carlisle. When breathalysed he was found to be three times over the legal limit for alcohol.

Unwell

The incident complained of by the Society had occurred two days earlier when Mr Robertson had been on locum duty at a pharmacy in Carlisle. He had been in the dispensary when an assistant found him looking unwell and swaying on his feet. He was made to sit down but refused offers of help, saying he was fit to dispense. When he tried to stand up, he had difficulty in doing so. A security officer was called and Mr Robertson was taken to hospital. He later reappeared at the pharmacy and attempted to work although he was still unsteady and his speech was slurred. He was asked to leave, refused a taxi and insisted that his car keys, previously taken from him, were returned so he could drive home.

Since those incidents, Mr Robertson had undertaken rehabilitation treatment, mainly at the Society’s Birdsgrove House treatment centre.

Giving the committee’s decision, the chairman (Lord Fraser of Carmyllie, QC) said the two incidents indicated a prolonged period of excessive drinking. Such conduct brought the profession into disrepute and demonstrated a serious impairment of Mr Robertson’s ability to practise as a pharmacist. He had undergone treatment; although he had twice relapsed, the prognosis was favourable if he continued with his care programme.

The committee ordered that his name should be removed. However, although it was not usual to indicate a fixed period for removal, in the circumstances of the present case an application for restoration would be considered in a year, provided Mr Robertson kept to his treatment and there had been no further relapses.

Reprimand for pharmacist who did not keep his Controlled Drugs register up to date

A London pharmacist has been reprimanded by the Statutory Committee after being fined for not keeping his Controlled Drugs register up to date.

At its meeting on January 15, the committee considered the case of Anthony Francis De Souza, of 160 Woolwich Road, Bexleyheath, Kent. On February 9, 2000, at Camberwell Green magistrates’ court, Mr De Souza had pleaded guilty to a number of offences under the misuse of Drugs Act 1971 relating to failure to keep proper records of the receipt or supply of a Controlled Drug between December 23, 1999, and January 5, 2000. There was a total of six offences: two of failing to make entries in the Controlled Drugs register relating to the receipt of methadone, three of failing to record the supply of methadone to patients, and one of failing to date prescriptions at the time of dispensing; 19 other matters were taken into consideration. Mr De Souza had been fined a total of £300 and ordered to pay £50 costs.

Geoff Hudson, of Penningtons (solicitors) appeared in order to present the facts of the case to the committee.

Mr De Souza, who was present at the hearing, was represented by Sarah Wood, of counsel, instructed by Charles Russell (solicitors).

The committee was told that the offences had come to light when one of the Society’s inspectors had paid a routine visit to Mr De Souza’s premises, Gregsons Pharmacy, at 60 Nunhead Lane, Peckham, London SE15, on January 6, 2000. When he examined the Controlled Drugs register for methadone, he found the last entry in the supply section was dated December 22, 1999, and there was no entry for methadone obtained by the pharmacy after December 24.

A number of prescriptions for methadone dispensed after that date were in the dispensary but had not been entered, and methadone had been delivered to the pharmacy by a wholesaler on December 29 and 30. Entries were missing for 12 x 500ml methadone mixture received on December 29 and 1 x 500ml received on December 30. On the supply side, entries were missing for 1,540ml methadone mixture supplied on December 29 and 420ml supplied on December 30. The police had been informed and the prosecution followed.

Giving the committee’s decision, the chairman (Lord Fraser of Carmyllie, QC) said that until December 22, 1999, Mr De Souza had made proper entries in the Controlled Drugs register but from that date until January 6, 2000, he had failed to do so. This had been explained as a consequence of the Christmas and millennium breaks (when the premises had been closed from December 25 to 28, 1999, and from December 31, 1999, to January 3, 2000, leading to a backlog of entries.

The chairman pointed out that convictions under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations were of a character that would make a pharmacist unfit to be on the register. One of the primary duties imposed by law on pharmacists was that Controlled Drug registers must be kept up to date. Mr De Souza had admitted that he knew exactly why it was important to keep up the entries in the way the law required.

He had been fully co-operative with both the Society’s inspector and the police, making a full admission of his failure, and no Controlled Drugs had been unaccounted for. The prescriptions concerned, although not entered in the register, had been clipped to it.

The committee ruled that Mr De Souza should be reprimanded.