Australia, July 22 -- New South Wales Land and Environment Court issued text of the following judgement on June 20:

1. By application dated 23 May 2024, the Health Care Complaints Commission (the Commission) applied for disciplinary findings and orders under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (NSW) (the National Law) against a practitioner pharmacist Mr Ali Abdallah (the Respondent).

2. The orders sought by the Commission in the event that the complaints are approved or admitted are as follows:

1) Cancellation of the Respondent's registration, pursuant to s 149C(1)(b) of the National Law with a non-review period of 2-3 years.

2) A prohibition order pursuant to s 149C(5)(a) of the National Law prohibiting the Respondent from providing health services as a pharmacy assistant, a pharmacy dispensary or pharmacy manager, for the same period as any non-review period imposed.

3) An order that the Respondent pay the Commission's costs as agreed or assessed under clause 13 of Schedule 5D of the National Law.

3. At the hearing on 7 April 2025 the Commission withdrew its application for a prohibition order as set out in subparagraph (2) above.

4. The Commission relies on two complaints in support of its application. The first is that the Respondent is guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct under s 139B(1)(a) and/or (l) of the National Law in that the Respondent has:

1) engaged in conduct that demonstrates the knowledge and judgment possessed and care exercised by the practitioner in the practice of pharmacy as significantly below the standard reasonably expected of a practitioner of an equivalent level of training or experience; and/or

2) engaged in improper or unethical conduct relating to the practice or purported practice of pharmacy.

5. The second complaint is that the Respondent is guilty of professional misconduct under s 139E of the National Law in that he has:

1) engaged in unsatisfactory professional conduct of a sufficiently serious nature to justify suspension or cancellation of the practitioner's registration, and/or

2) engaged in more than one instance of unsatisfactory professional conduct that, when the instances are considered together, amount to conduct of a sufficiently serious nature to justify the suspension or cancellation of the Respondent's registration.

Background

6. The Respondent was first registered as a pharmacist on 6 February 2008. At the relevant times he was the sole proprietor of Hornsby 4 Less Pharmacy (the Pharmacy) at Hornsby, New South Wales.

7. The Respondent completed his internship at West Ryde Pharmacy in order to become registered in 2008. He commenced working at the Pharmacy as a locum in or around 2008 and purchased a share in the pharmacy as a junior partner/proprietor in 2010. In November 2012, he purchased the remaining share of the pharmacy and has been the sole proprietor since that date.

8. Until late 2020 he held ownership interests in three pharmacies in New South Wales and five pharmacies in Victoria.

9. The Pharmacy was subjected to an investigation triggered by notification by the Respondent of loss or theft of Schedule 8 drugs and Schedule 4, Appendix D drugs on 25 May 2020 sent to the Pharmaceutical Regulatory Unit (the PRU), which produced a report dated 1 June 2021.

10. Shortly thereafter the Pharmacy Council of New South Wales conducted s 150 proceedings under the National Law on 23 July 2021.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://www.caselaw.nsw.gov.au/decision/1977b15c53697b3b2514ff08)

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.