A health board acted "unlawfully" by allowing a dispensing doctor to continue to operate in a pharmacy's catchment area, a Scottish court has said.

NHS Grampian's decision to allow the Haddo Medical Group to dispense in the area surrounding Tarves Pharmacy was "procedurally unfair", the Scottish Court of Session - the country's supreme civil court – ruled on Tuesday (September 9).

The NHS Board had unlawfully applied the regulations on dispensing services and failed to inform the pharmacy's owner that it was reviewing dispensing arrangements in the area, a senior judge said.

Lindsay Craig, owner of Tarves Pharmacy, sought a judicial review against NHS Grampian's decision in 2012 to allow the medical group to continue to dispense to patients from the neighbouring village of Pitmedden. 

NHS Grampian initially recommended that the medical practice stop dispensing in Pitmedden, but reversed its decision following written submissions from MSPs and community councils. Following the submissions, a review panel decided that sections of the population would have difficulty accessing Tarves Pharmacy due to a reliance on public transport, despite Ms Craig pointing out that her pharmacy provided a free delivery service.

The judge said the health board's review panel had shown a lack of communication with the pharmacy, which stood in "stark contrast" to its "high level of engagement" with the community councils.

Ms Craig said she was "delighted" that the court had "entirely vindicated" her position. "The past two or three years have been incredibly difficult, but my hope is that I can now press ahead with providing a high quality, full pharmaceutical care service to the people of the area," she said.

Community Pharmacy Scotland (CPS) chief executive Harry McQuillan said the court's decision had shown that Tarves Pharmacy was "absolutely correct" to challenge NHS Grampian.

CPS said that while it supported GPs dispensing in rural and remote areas, this "valuable" service could not be compared to a "full pharmaceutical care services contract delivered in a pharmacy".

NHS Grampian said it was "studying the decision in detail" and would "seek guidance" on what action was required.

In June, Scottish contractors warned that new regulations on pharmacy applications could deny patients in rural areas access to pharmaceutical services.

	Has your pharmacy experienced difficulties with dispensing doctor boundaries?