A pharmacist has been struck off the professional register for stealing Solpadol tablets and failing to safely dispose of prescription-only medicines, while working at Boots.

Chris Logan, registration number 2054337, took a "cavalier" approach to pharmacy procedures and received a criminal conviction for stealing medicines, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) heard at a fitness-to-practise hearing on March 24.

The GPhC acknowledged that Mr Logan, who was not present at the hearing, held a previously unblemished record. But it stressed that he had failed to co-operate with the GPhC investigation and had shown a "flippant" attitude towards his responsibilities as a pharmacist.

Mr Logan was working for a Boots branch in Glasgow in April 2010 when the team witnessed him take Solpadol tablets from the dispensary and put them in his pocket.

The GPhC said Chris Logan, registration number 2054337, had shown disrespect for the regulator and a "blatant" disregard for professional standards	More fitness-to-practise cases Pharmacists struck off for inventing 'phantom' employees Boots pharmacist struck off for falsifying MURs Contractor struck off for defrauding Royal Mail of £500,000
	The following day, the store manager found two bin liners outside the pharmacy containing prescription-only drugs. The pharmacy's dispenser also found packs of Solpadol in the same bin, with at least 30 tablets missing. The pharmacy records showed no Solpadol had been supplied the previous day.

When a Boots profit protection manager questioned Mr Logan, he admitted he had "no excuses" for failing to put medicines in the pharmaceutical waste bins, as stipulated in standard procedures. He also admitted to taking around 20 or 30 Solpadol tablets because he was in "extreme pain" after having a tooth removed.

Mr Logan was subsequently dismissed from Boots and pleaded guilty to theft in Airdrie Sheriff Court in November 2010, where his sentence was deferred for six months.

The GPhC launched its own investigation into Mr Logan to determine his fitness-to-practice and whether the theft was related to addiction. In November 2011, the regulator asked for consent to contact his GP as Mr Logan had stated in earlier interviews that he had never had an addiction to codeine or a similar product.

But Mr Logan only gave his consent for GP contact three months later and failed to attend a medical examination arranged by the GPhC. He initially ignored the GPhC's further attempts to contact him, but eventually "re-engaged with the process" in November 2012, and a medical report was carried out in early 2013. The GPhC did not reveal the details of the report.

In more recent conversations with the regulator, Mr Logan said he "did not see why he should help" the investigation, the GPhC heard. It also noted that, when a case worker enquired whether he intended to return to practise, Mr Logan suggested he was "taking the piss".

The GPhC said Mr Logan had shown disrespect for the regulator and a "blatant" disregard for professional standards. It stressed that his misconduct highlighted "major issues" with his fitness-to-practise, which could pose a risk to the public, and ruled to strike him off the register.

Read the full case here

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