Procedure for Complaint Handling
Health & Community Services Complaints Commissioner
The Complaints Advisory Committee
Formal Proceedings (pdf document)
Obligation to Report Incapacity
Impaired practice by an unwell pharmacist
The Pharmacy Board of South acts in the public interest with a purpose to ensure the;
In any dealings the Pharmacy Board of South Australia undertakes in the area of practice impairment of a pharmacist, the aim is to facilitate the rehabilitation and return to practice of the pharmacist concerned in a manner consistent with public safety.
The Pharmacy Board of South Australia will consider allegations of conduct consistent with impaired practice. Conditions that have been known to contribute to impaired practice include;
A complaint of impairment may be raised by a member of the community, health care professional or the Board. Under Section 42 of the Pharmacists Act 1991 a medical practitioner has an obligation to report the impairment of a pharmacist if in their opinion an illness "has resulted in or is likely to result in mental or physical incapacity that seriously impairs, or may seriously impair, the pharmacist's ability to practice pharmacy".
The Pharmacy Board of South Australia is obliged to investigate any allegation following either the raising of a complaint or the Board suspecting impaired practice by a pharmacist.
This investigation is to be conducted by the Pharmacy Board of South Australia's "Pharmacist Recovery Committee" (PRC) comprising the Board's President, Registrar and one other member as determined by the Board President.
The PRC is responsible to the Board for;
The PRC intends to meet the needs of pharmacists for recovery from impairment with support through a confidential, non-disciplinary approach. The PRC aims to encourage unwell pharmacists to involve themselves in mutually developed undertakings before their impairment harms a patient or damages their career through disciplinary action.
The PRC will conduct its activity "in-confidence" while reporting to the Pharmacy Board on a monthly basis.