A SYDNEY-BASED pharmacist who shipped medications ordered under the National Diabetes Subsidy Scheme (NDSS) to overseas patients has had his professional registration suspended.
A NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal heard that Albert Young, ordered products through the NDSS, using patients' NDSS registration numbers, and sold them to ineligible clients through Amazon, under the trading name BeanPharmaAus, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Evidence from Australian Post showed the pharmacists had shipped 17 packages overseas between Feb and May 2019 either in his name or under BeanPharmaAus.
The tribunal was told that Young's registration was cancelled by the Pharmacy Council of NSW in May 2019, a month after he was let go by Minett's Pharmacy in Chester Hill, where it was discovered that he had inappropriately removed stock from the store.
However, the tribunal heard Young continued to work as a locum at another pharmacy in western Sydney after his registration was cancelled.
The tribunal ruled that Young will not be able to review his registration suspension until Nov 2024 at the earliest.
"The cancellation of registration reflects the seriousness of Young's professional misconduct (and) the potential harm to the health and safety of the public which he has caused," the tribunal said.
"(The cancellation) will provide a deterrent to other pharmacists who may be tempted to misconduct themselves in the same or similar manner and will enhance the confidence of the public in the integrity of the profession of pharmacy."
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