The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 268 No 7201 p793-795
8 June 2002

This article
Reprint
Photocopy

News summary

Related websites
Royal Pharmaceutical Society (www.rpsgb.org.uk)

Pyrrhic victory in appeal over Statutory Committee

A pharmacist has had his name removed from the Register despite persuading the High Court that an initial decision by the Statutory Committee to strike him off was unjustified and in conflict with the Human Rights Act 1998.

Mr Jethro Panjawani was ordered by the Statutory Committee to be struck off in September last year after it found that he was unable to account for a number of missing Viagra (sildenafil) tablets following an inspection of his pharmacy in September 1999. There were also complaints about Mr Panjawani's record keeping.

During an inspection and stock take at the pharmacy, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's inspectors had compiled a stock list. This was accepted in evidence by the Statutory Committee. During Mr Panjawani's appeal, the High Court judges said that it had been wrong for the committee to place so much weight upon the stock list without cross-examining the inspector involved in drawing it up.

Stephen Lutener, the Society's head of professional conduct, told The Journal: "While the court decided that the committee's decision to remove Mr Panjawani from the Register was flawed, it nevertheless went on to find that he should be struck off because of his poor record keeping, especially as he had appeared before the committee previously."