Pharmacist Yostus Hanna stole Xanax but will keep practising

A drug-addicted pharmacist who used his position to steal Xanax while working at chemists in Melbourne’s south has received a slap on the wrist.

Yostus Hanna stole drugs to feed his addiction while he worked as a registered pharmacist at Chemist Warehouses in Brighton and Cheltenham.

A drug-addicted pharmacist who illegally obtained Xanax while working at multiple chemists is allowed to keep practising.

Yostus Hanna stole drugs and falsified prescriptions to feed his addiction while he worked as a registered pharmacist at Chemist Warehouses in Brighton and Cheltenham.

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Mr Hanna, whose offending began in June 2014, also misappropriated Xanax from pharmacies in Hampton and Pascoe Vale.

His racket came unstuck in February 2015 when a former employer alerted the Pharmacy Board of Australia of Mr Hanna’s offending.

Mr Hanna, who was also a self-employed home medication review pharmacist, admitted to the board that he had forged or dispensed scripts for Xanax under false names for his own personal use.

He also admitted to falsifying or omitting records to conceal his activities.

The board referred his conduct to VCAT because it “reasonably believed” he had “engaged in conduct that constituted professional misconduct”.

The matter was heard by VCAT vice-president Heather Lambrick on November 21.

Ms Lambrick said Mr Hanna’s offences were “particularly serious”.

“(It’s a) serious matter for any health professional to self-administer Alprazolam (Xanax),” she said.

“It is particularly serious for a dispensing pharmacist to do so.

“The community entrusts pharmacists with the safe and appropriate dispensing of pharmaceuticals.”

Ms Lambrick slapped Mr Hanna with a reprimand for professional misconduct but stopped short of barring him from practising.

“(Mr Hanna) brought the profession of pharmacy into disrepute,” she said.

“A reprimand is an important and serious form of censure and condemnation for a health professional.

“Given the serious nature of the conduct, it would have been open to us to consider the need to impose a suspension or cancellation of Mr Hanna’s registration.”

Ms Lambrick said Mr Hanna’s efforts to shake his addiction and commitment to maintaining a connection with his profession were factors in allowing him to continue as a pharmacist.

Mr Hanna, who has not been able to practise since February 2015, will be allowed to return in six months under strict conditions including regular drug testing.

He will also be required to be mentored by another pharmacist.

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