Pharmacy Council of New South Wales

Doctor shopping, or the practice by patients of seeking prescriptions from multiple prescribers and presenting them at multiple pharmacies, has long been an area where pharmacists have needed to be extremely vigilant. It has come to the notice of the Pharmacy Council...

Pharmacist ZXY was found guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct and professional misconduct by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal on 6 September 2021. The practitioner’s registration was cancelled and an order made that an application for review of this...

You need reliable, evidence-based information to be able to make good choices about your healthcare. But in a climate thick with commentary about COVID-19 and vaccines, how do you sort fact from fiction? A joint statement from Ahpra and the National Boards, the Health...

The Health Practitioner Regulation (New South Wales) Regulation 2016 adopts, in Schedule 5 (for pharmacy premises) and Schedule 6 (for professional services room premises) of the regulation, the latest editions , and all published amendments or supplements to those...

This article covers the practicalities surrounding the supply of Schedule 3 medications . Where to find critical information There are a few different sources of information which pharmacists need to be aware of in order to ensure they are fulfilling their...

Over the last months, the Council has received an increasing number of complaints relating to the compounding of eye drops in community pharmacies. Two examples are highlighted here: Case 1 A patient submitted a complaint to Ahpra complaining of blurred vision, dilated...

In February, the Council welcomed Rick Samimi as a pharmacist practitioner member of the Council. Rick is a graduate of the University of Sydney and has been a registered pharmacist since 1991. He has completed a Master of Commerce (UNSW) and a Graduate Diploma in...

Health practitioners are traditionally reluctant to make mandatory notifications for various reasons. These include a fear of becoming a part of a drawn out legal process or a perception that they are ‘dobbing in’ their peers or fellow health practitioners. It can be a...

This month we draw your attention to a case involving a nurse who admitted to forging prescriptions on pads stolen from two medical practitioners. The prescriptions were for opioids and benzodiazepines, and the fact that they were forgeries was detected by the...

My patient has run out of their medication and doesn’t have a script but needs the medication today. I don’t want them to go without - what are my obligations and what can I do? The issue of the request for or the supply of a medication without a physical prescription...