Sydney pharmacist suspended and fined

Shelley Ross admitted to stealing drugs for personal use

SYDNEY — A Sydney pharmacist who admitted to stealing drugs for personal use over a five-year period and who attempted to fool investigators by submitting a phoney urine sample, has been suspended for six months and fined $15,000.

Shelley Ross of Royal Avenue formerly worked as a pharmacist at the Meadows Pharmasave, Zellers Pharmacy and the Medicine Shoppe — all located in Sydney. She agreed that between 2008 and 2013, she engaged in professional misconduct and conduct unbecoming of a pharmacist.

In a settlement agreement finalized last month with the Nova Scotia College of Pharmacists, Ross agreed to the suspension, fine and strict monitoring provisions for three years if she returns to dispensing drugs.

The suspension ran from August to February.

According to the settlement agreement, Ross gained access to thousands of benzodiazepines over the five-year period by stealing them directly, writing bogus prescriptions, and changing inventory counts on store computer systems.

While under investigation by the college, Ross was asked to submit a urine sample, which she did, but when investigators learned the sample was a fake, Ross refused to provide a sample that was witnessed and admitted the submitted sample was not hers.

Should Ross return to a job as a pharmacist, she is to notify the college, which will inform her employer of the discipline decision on her file. She can only take benzodiazepines if prescribed by an authorized prescriber.

She agreed to be monitored by the college for three years after returning to the profession. During that period, Ross is not allowed to work alone while dispensing drugs and is not allowed to order or receive any benzodiazepines. She is also not allowed to hold the position of pharmacy manager and is to take a business ethics course within the next 12 months.