A B.C. pharmacist has been sanctioned by the industry for taking thousands of tablets of narcotics and controlled medications from a drugstore for his personal use.
Kale Henry Christensen, the manager of a pharmacy in Dawson Creek, was handed down the ruling by the College of Pharmacists of B.C. in February.
Between September 2014 and June 2018, Christensen took 16,000 tablets of a narcotic drug substance and 10,000 tablets of another controlled drug substance without a prescription and without paying for them, according to the agreed statement of facts, which were made public only recently. The specific kinds of narcotics are unknown.
The college determined that in order to hide that the medicine was taken, Christensen altered and adjusted the pharmacy’s inventory records.
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Christensen “placed himself and his patients at significant risk of harm when he took unauthorized medications for personal use and continued to practice in the capacity of a pharmacist,” the college said.
Christensen’s license as a registered pharmacist was suspended for 90 days and he has been banned from being a pharmacy manager or teacher for three years.
He was also ordered to pay a $1,500 fine and undergo an ethics course for health care professionals.
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