‘Not guilty’ verdict for four pharmacists caught up in prescription fraud

In 2017, drug addict Ramona Deane committed prescription fraud on a large scale, that entangled numerous pharmacists in south Auckland and Waikato. Before she was caught, Ms Deane was able to convince 37 pharmacists working at 21 different pharmacies to dispense a fake script for tramadol and metronidazole more than 60 times. Thirty-five pharmacists were investigated and four of them were charged with malpractice. In December, they appeared before the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal. Pharmacy Today reporter Jonathan Chilton-Towle attended the three-day hearing